Great Austrian media: Kosovo in political crisis following special charges

Parliament in Pristina must agree to a new head of state. Former President Hashim Thaci is on trial at The Hague, writes “Die Presse”.

Kosovo's strong man, Hashim Thaci, now had to change the office's renowned chair with the docking bank. With an apparent reluctance, the president, who had resigned several days earlier, allowed himself to read the indictment in his first appearance before the Kosovo Special Court in The Hague early in the week. Former Kosovo Albanian Army political leader, The KLA dismissed charges of responsibility for war crimes such as murder, persecution and torture during the Kosovo war in the late 1990s: “I plead innocent at any point”, wrote the Austrian newspaper, emphasising how David Hooper, Hashim Thaci's lawyer, insulted with the absence of charges of organ trafficking in the indictment against his client.

Last Thursday, former President Hashim Thaci, along with former PDK leader Kadri Veselin and LVV Parliamentary Group chief Rexhep Selimin, left on a plane to the Specialised Chambers in The Hague. The day before, former Prime Minister Jakup Krasniqi was arrested and sent to the detention of Specialised Chambers.

The arrests came after a Special Court preliminary procedure judge confirmed the charges against four former KLA leaders.

They are accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The incident holds Thaci, Veselin, Krasniqi and Selimi responsible for a series of crimes allegedly committed at several detention centres during 1998-1999. The specialised prosecutor accuses KLA leaders of being aware or should be aware of these crimes.