The Hague (Netherlands), 16 Sept. (LaPresse/AP) – A special tribunal for Kosovo, based in The Hague and supported by the European Union, today convicted former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci on four counts relating to war crimes committed during the country’s war of independence from Serbia, sentencing him to 25 years in prison. Thaci, 58, who resigned from office almost six years ago to face the charges, was found guilty by a panel of judges of murder, torture, cruel treatment and arbitrary detention. Thaci was charged alongside three other former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), who fought against Serbian forces in the 1998–99 war. The four are regarded by many as national heroes in Kosovo. Over the weekend, thousands of people demonstrated in Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, in support of the four men. The demonstrators filled a central square in the capital, many waving red and black Albanian flags. Portraits of the four former KLA fighters were displayed throughout the city, alongside a large digital clock counting down to Wednesday’s sentencing hearing. “In the name of the people, declare them innocent,” read one banner.
Kosovo: former president Thaci sentenced to 25 years for war crimes
The Hague (Netherlands), 16 Sept. (LaPresse/AP) – A special tribunal for Kosovo, based in The Hague and supported by the European Union, today convicted former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci on four counts relating to war crimes committed during the country’s war of independence from Serbia, sentencing him to 25 years in prison. Thaci, 58, who resigned from office almost six years ago to face the charges, was found guilty by a panel of judges of murder, torture, cruel treatment and arbitrary detention. Thaci was charged alongside three other former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), who fought against Serbian forces in the 1998–99 war. The four are regarded by many as national heroes in Kosovo. Over the weekend, thousands of people demonstrated in Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, in support of the four men. The demonstrators filled a central square in the capital, many waving red and black Albanian flags. Portraits of the four former KLA fighters were displayed throughout the city, alongside a large digital clock counting down to Wednesday’s sentencing hearing. “In the name of the people, declare them innocent,” read one banner.