Kosovo's former president Hashim Thaçi has been sentenced to 25 years in prison by the Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague after being found criminally responsible for war crimes committed during the 1998-1999 Kosovo war.
Three other former senior Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) leaders were also sentenced. Jakup Krasniqi received 25 years in prison, Kadri Veseli was sentenced to 18 years and Rexhep Selimi received 13 years.
Thaçi, 58, was found guilty of several offenses, including murder, torture, cruel treatment and arbitrary detention. The court's judgment concerned crimes committed against people detained by KLA forces and against civilians and political opponents during and after the Kosovo war.
All four defendants had pleaded not guilty and denied the charges. Prosecutors had requested 45-year prison sentences for each defendant.
The prosecution alleged that KLA members carried out killings, torture, persecution and unlawful detention against political opponents and people perceived as collaborators with Serbian forces. The defense disputed the allegations and argued that the KLA did not have a sufficiently structured chain of command to establish the defendants' responsibility. Thaçi's lawyers also argued that there was no direct evidence linking him to the alleged crimes.
The Kosovo Specialist Chambers was established under Kosovo law in 2016 to prosecute alleged crimes committed during and after the 1998-1999 conflict. Although based in The Hague and staffed by international judges, the court operates under Kosovo's legal framework.
Thaçi resigned as Kosovo's president in 2020 following his indictment and was transferred to The Hague, where he has remained in custody. He also faces a separate case involving allegations of obstruction of justice.
The verdicts were closely followed in Kosovo, where the four men remain prominent figures associated with the KLA and the country's political history. Supporters gathered in Pristina ahead of the verdicts, calling for their acquittal.
The 1998-1999 Kosovo war killed more than 13,000 people, according to established estimates, with the majority of those killed being ethnic Albanians. The conflict ended after a 78-day NATO air campaign against Serbian forces, followed by the withdrawal of Serbian and Yugoslav forces from Kosovo.
Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Serbia does not recognize Kosovo's independence, and the two sides continue to hold negotiations facilitated by the European Union.
