Thousands of people rallied in Pristina on Saturday in support of Kosovo's former President Hashim Thaci and three other ex-fighters ahead of their verdicts next week in a war crimes trial.
Thaci and three other former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) commanders are facing alleged war crimes charges connected to the 1998-1999 separatist war from Serbia. Protesters filled a central square in the capital, many carrying red and black Albanian flags, with portraits of the four former KLA fighters displayed across the city. A large digital clock counted down the time until the court in The Hague delivers its verdicts on Wednesday. A banner read, “In the name of the people, declare them innocent.”
Prosecutors have requested maximum 45-year prison sentences for Thaci and the other defendants—Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi, and Jakup Krasniqi. They are accused of murder, torture, and persecution of civilians during and after the conflict, which resulted in 13,000 deaths.
Thaci resigned from office in 2020 to defend himself against 10 charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes. He and the three other defendants have been in custody since November 2020 at the court, which is formally part of Kosovo’s judicial system. All four men have denied the charges. Thaci stated in a closing statement earlier this year that he was innocent and that “the only just decision would be my full acquittal.”
Protesters in Pristina praised the KLA as a liberation movement. Some officials have criticized the proceedings as political and designed to create a false balance with Serbia, whose political and military leaders had previously been tried and convicted of war crimes in Kosovo by a separate U.N. court. Politician Bedri Hamza told the crowd, “we will not allow history to be rewritten,” adding, “A just decision strengthens justice, while an unjust one destroys it. Kosovo is waiting, Kosovo is watching, Kosovo is standing firm.”
Edi Rama, prime minister of neighboring Albania, urged “freedom for the liberators” and wrote on Facebook that “the farce is in its final days.”
Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, supported by the United States and most European Union countries. Belgrade, backed by Russia and China, does not recognize the split, which has been a source of tension in the Balkan region. During the war, most of the 13,000 people killed were ethnic Albanians, and approximately 1 million ethnic Albanian Kosovars were displaced. NATO airstrikes against Serbian forces eventually forced Belgrade to withdraw.
Both Kosovo and Serbia are seeking European Union membership and have been informed that they must normalize ties before joining.