Major number of suspects interviewed by Kosovo Prosecutor for expulsion of Turkish citizens

The Special Prosecutor of the Republic of Kosovo is taking investigative action, in co-operation with the Police Inspectorate (IPK) and the Kosovo Police, over the case of the expulsion of six Turkish citizens last year from Kosovo to Turkey.

Ekrem Luftiu, spokesman for the Special Prosecutor of Kosovo, said: “has been questioned by witnesses, as well as a large number of suspects”.

Also, he said, all evidence to be provided will be assessed by the Special Prosecutor.

In March 2018, at the request of Turkish authorities, Kosovo authorities had arrested and deported six Turkish citizens to Turkey.

For the investigation into the circumstances of the expulsion of six Turkish citizens, last year the Parliamentary Investigative Commission has been established, which has concluded the report where 31 violations have been identified, beginning with the decision to revote Kosovo's permits and the order for the forced expulsion of Turkish citizens, which according to the report, were contrary to Kosovo's laws.

The biggest violations, according to the leaders of this Commission, were done by the two main security agencies in Kosovo, the Kosovo Agency for Intelligence and the Kosovo Police respectively.

The Commission's report last month has been adopted at an extraordinary session of the Kosovo Assembly.

The deportation of six Turkish citizens from Kosovo in March last year is said to have been done through a co-ordinated action between intelligence services from Turkey and Kosovo. But MPs, the president, prime minister and Kosovo Assembly Speaker have said they had no knowledge of the case.

For the six Turkish citizens, Ankara suspects they are members of the organisation “Hizmet”, of Turkish religious leader Fetullah Gulen. The latter, Turkish authorities blame him for a coup effort in Turkey in 2016.

In March of this year, the United States Embassy in Kosovo said through a statement to the media that “has spent a year since Kosovo has expelled six Turkish citizens without a proper process, claiming they threatened national security”.

US Embassy Seeks Full Responsibility in Case of Exile of 6 Turkish Citizens

The embassy called on Kosovo institutions to seek full responsibility from anyone who violates the law and reminded Kosovo leaders that “security institutions should operate only within their constitutional authority”.

Shortly thereafter, the Turkish Embassy reacted by quoting Tuqria Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy, who has declared Turkish authorities are reaping concrete results in the fight against, as he has called it, “the distribution of the terrorist organisation FETO” outside Turkey. / REL