Activist Ramazan Bekteshi sees the dismissal of Blerim Isufaj as chief prosecutor of the Special Prosecution Office as an opportunity to open a new chapter for justice in Kosovo. In his response, he criticized the leadership of the institution and called for justice to be independent of politics, with those in power subject to it.
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Bekteshi recalled that Isufaj had risen through the justice system during the tenures of Thaçi, Haradinaj and Hoti. According to Bekteshi, the Kosovo Prosecutorial Council elected Isufaj chief prosecutor of the Special Prosecution Office in 2019.
In his post, Bekteshi wrote that the Kosovo Prosecutorial Council dismissed Isufaj on October 2, 2026, by 6 votes to 1, after finding mismanagement, incompetence and failure to fulfill his legal duties. He said Isufaj’s departure should also mark the end of the mindset that treats justice as the property of politicians.
Bekteshi devoted part of his response to the case of Milan Radoiçiq. He recalled that the arrest warrant for Radoiçiq had been withdrawn at the request of the Special Prosecution Office, while Isufaj had explained the move as an investigative strategy to secure Radoiçiq’s cooperation.
According to Bekteshi, the strategy failed: Radoiçiq did not appear, the expected information did not make it possible to bring him to justice, and the arrest warrant was reinstated. He demanded accountability for an approach that, he said, allowed a suspect to remain beyond the reach of justice and damaged public trust in it.
Bekteshi asked whether the dismissal would finally bring change to Kosovo’s justice system. He held Isufaj responsible for allowing a person he described as a dangerous criminal to remain free and stressed that the rule of law cannot exist when politicians control the justice system. Kosovo does not need chief prosecutors with political power, he said, but a strong, independent justice system to which those in power must answer. He also asked who fears justice after the chief prosecutor’s fall.
From a political perspective, Bekteshi said Isufaj’s removal was in line with Kurti’s position, as Kurti had called for a change in the leadership of the Special Prosecution Office. He also noted that some opposition figures have described the decision as political revenge or a threat to judicial independence, while the Kosovo Prosecutorial Council says the dismissal concerns Isufaj’s performance of his duties, not political influence.
Bekteshi described Isufaj’s dismissal as one of the most positive developments in Kosovo. In his view, the removal will unblock the justice system and lead to the reopening of many cases deliberately set aside and investigations that had been suspended. Nevertheless, he stressed that even the dismissal of 100 chief prosecutors cannot make up for letting Radoiçiq remain free.
