Kosovo PM Kurti Calls War Crimes Convictions of KLA Leaders an 'Unacceptable Injustice'

Kosovo's prime minister, Albin Kurti, has condemned the convictions of four former Kosovo Liberation Army leaders — including former president Hashim Thaci — as an "unacceptable injustice," and said his government will support their appeals.

In a video statement, Kurti described the sentences handed down by the Kosovo Specialist Chambers as a harsh and damaging punishment. He said the verdict must be overturned and rectified on appeal as soon as possible, and that Pristina would ensure a full and dignified institutional defence for the four men.

"We stand with the families of the former KLA leaders and with all their fellow liberation fighters," Kurti said, adding that while specific charges had been adjudicated, the reason for the KLA's formation was not on trial and could not be condemned or tarnished.

Thaci, 58, was convicted of four counts of war crimes — murder, torture, cruel treatment and arbitrary detention — and sentenced to 25 years in prison. He resigned from the presidency nearly six years ago to face the charges. The other defendants were also sentenced: Kadri Veseli received 18 years, Rexhep Selimi 13 years and Jakup Krasniqi 25 years. All four had denied the charges.

The court acquitted the men on six counts of crimes against humanity, with judges finding that prosecutors had failed to prove the alleged crimes formed part of a widespread and systematic attack on civilians. Prosecutors had sought a maximum 45-year sentence for Thaci and the other defendants.

The judgment is a heavy blow for Thaci, once embraced by Western leaders who invited him to the 1999 peace talks in France and saw him as a figure capable of guiding Kosovo toward independence. The four men are widely regarded as national heroes in Kosovo.

Thaci and three other former KLA leaders stood accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity during the 1998-99 conflict with Serb forces. Most of the roughly 13,000 people who died in the war were ethnic Albanians, and about one million ethnic Albanian Kosovars were driven from their homes before a 78-day NATO air campaign ended the fighting.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, a move Belgrade refuses to recognise. Ties between the two remain tense despite years of negotiations mediated by the European Union and supported by the United States.