Security measures being prepared in The Hague ahead of verdict in Hashim Thaçi case
In The Hague, Netherlands, police and the Kosovo Specialist Chambers are preparing additional security measures ahead of the announcement of the verdict for former Kosovo president Hashim Thaçi and three other defendants. On Wednesday, demonstrations by supporters of the Kosovo Liberation Army and ethnic Albanians are expected near the court, Balkan Insight reports.
A Hague police spokesperson told the outlet that law enforcement officers are aware of the planned demonstrations and will be present at the site. Kosovo Specialist Chambers spokesperson Angela Griep said that the court is taking all necessary security measures within its powers and responsibilities, given possible protests on September 16.
Meeting of civil society organizations canceled
Due to security risks, the court canceled a planned meeting with representatives of non-governmental organizations from Kosovo and Serbia that are part of the Court Information Network at the Specialist Chambers. Sofija Todorović, director of the Belgrade-based Youth Initiative for Human Rights Serbia, said the court could not guarantee participants that they would not be recognized or face hostile treatment.
Dušan Radaković, a representative of the Advocacy Centre for Democratic Culture, noted that the decision to cancel the visit was primarily related to security considerations and the announced large-scale protests. In his view, without additional explanations, such a decision could deepen some citizens’ distrust in the transparency of the court’s work.
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Case involves four former fighters
Along with Thaçi, former Kosovo parliament speakers Kadri Veseli and Jakup Krasniqi, as well as former lawmaker Rexhep Selimi, are standing trial. They are accused of crimes against humanity, including murder, torture and unlawful imprisonment during the conflict in Kosovo in the late 1990s. All four have been held in custody in The Hague since November 2020 and have pleaded not guilty.
Prosecutors at the Kosovo Specialist Chambers are seeking 45-year prison sentences, while the defense insists on acquittal. According to the prosecution, the men bear individual and command responsibility for crimes against detainees at Kosovo Liberation Army detention sites in Kosovo and neighboring Albania, including more than one hundred killings. The defense argues that the Kosovo Liberation Army lacked a proper command structure, meaning the defendants had no real authority over lower-ranking fighters.
Rallies in support of the defendants have also been announced in Kosovo. Thousands of their supporters marched through the country’s capital, Pristina, on September 12, while relatives and supporters said they would await the verdict in the city’s main square.
