Special Hand over Changed Act on Thaci, Veselin, Krasniqi and Selimi

Kosovo's Specialised Chambers in The Hague have announced that based on the verdicts of Kosovo's preliminary trial judge, July 22nd 2022 and September 29, 2022, the Specialised Prosecutor's Office has handed over the confirmed amended indictment against Hashim Thaci, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi.

Otherwise, the preliminary judge, on 29 September, approved the Special Prosecutor's request to withdraw crimes claims in the Ferizaj municipality.

While the judge had partially approved Hashim Thaci's defence motion, submitted to the amended indictment in the case in which he and Kadri Veselini, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi are being charged with war crimes, and SPS was ordered to make changes to the amended indictment.

As for this, the SPS was ordered to hand over the further amended indictment by September 30th.

A DPS announcement said that on 22 July, the Pre-Procedure Court partially approved Thaci's defence request, which claims shortcomings in the recent indictment against the accused in the court case, handed over on April 29th 2022. Judge Giju ordered the SPS to, until September 30th, 2022 hand over the confirmed further amended indictment, with a number of additional information on the actual charges. Details concerning additions can be found in the current” decision, the notice said.

Otherwise, on April 29th, the Specialised Prosecutor's Office has handed over a amended indictment against Hashim Thaci, Kadri Veselin, Rexhepi and Jakup Krasniqi.

The prosecution is claiming that the four defendants have committed war crimes even in Gjilan, Budakov and Semtish.

In the published annex concerning crimes allegedly taking place in Semetitish and Budakova, the prosecution has listed war crimes such as arrest and unlawful or arbitrary detention, cruel or inhuman treatment, torture, murder. Meanwhile, as crimes against humanity, he has listed imprisonment, other inhuman acts, torture, murder, the disappearance of people by force and persecution.

And for crimes claiming to take place in Gjilan, as war crimes, he has listed the arrest and illegal or arbitrary ban, cruel or inhuman treatment, torture and murder. While, as crimes against humanity, it has listed imprisonment, other inhumane acts, torture, murder, and persecution.

On November 9th 2020, in their first appearances, Hashim Thaci's Jakup Krasniqi has been declared innocent of the charges placed on them. Wessel has been declared on November 10th, as has Selimi on November 11th. The incident against Hashim Thaci, Kadri Veselin, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi is confirmed on October 26, 2020.

According to the prosecution, at least between March 1998 and September 1999, Hashim Thaci, Kadri Veselini, Rexhep Selimi, Jakup Krasniqi and other members of the joint criminal enterprise had the common goal of securing and exercising control over all of Kosovo through methods involving intimidation, mistreatment, violence and the unlawful elimination of those considered opponents.

“Set up these opponents included persons who were, or who were considered to have been: (a) collaborators or forces, officials or state institutions of RFJ, or who (b) otherwise did not support the purposes or methods of the KLA and later QPK, among whom persons linked to the LDK and Serbs, Roma and persons of other nationalities (joinly, non-combatorsors). This common goal included crimes of persecution, imprisonment, arrest and arbitrary or illegal arrest, other inhumane acts, cruel treatment, torture, murder and forced disappearance of persons”, the indictment said.

In addition, Azem Syla, Lahi Brahimaj, Fatmir Limaj, Sylejman Selimi, Rrustem Mustafa, Shukri Buja, Latif Gashi and Sabit Geci are also mentioned. According to the indictment, the accused along with other KLA leaders contributed to achieving the common goal.

“As an alternative, some or all of these individuals were not members of the joint criminal enterprise, but were used by members of the joint criminal enterprise to commit crimes for the realisation of the common goal (with members of the NKP, jointly members and NKP instruments)”, says the accusation act. /Betimy for Justice