Indictment for war crimes in Gjakova against Radoicic and 19 others, analysts assess the strong signal to Belgrade

On Thursday, the Kosovo Special Prosecution filed an indictment for war crimes against 20 persons, linked to events in Gjakova.

Milan Radoicic is also on the list of defendants.

This group of 20 individuals faces charges for involvement in the elimination of 107 civilians, and the Special Prosecution has proposed that the trial be held in their absence.

The accused persons, who face the criminal offense ‘war crimes against the civilian population,’ have been identified by the prosecution only by initials: M.K., R.C., M.D., P.R., S.K., L.O., Zh.S., S.S., L.D., Z.R., D.G., Ç.B., V.B., R.B., R.R., L.R., M.Sh., M.R., S.G., and T.A.

The institution has also disclosed the functions that the defendants exercised during the relevant period.

Based on the Prosecutor’s data, during 1998-1999, M.K., in the role of head of the Secretariat for Internal Affairs in Gjakova, R.Ç., as commander of the Special Police units, and M.D., at the head of the 52nd Rocket Artillery Brigade, together with the other defendants, including Radoicic, as members of the aforementioned formations, are accused of participating in the massacre of 107 civilians during an ‘extended military-police operation.’

According to the official announcement of the Special Prosecution, during this operation, the accused initially separated women and children from men. The women were robbed, with gold jewelry, money, and other valuables confiscated, while the men were liquidated, some inside their homes and yards, and others at the point known as ‘Taliq Bridge’. Also, buildings were set on fire.

Security affairs specialist Arben Dashevci emphasizes that the communication through the filing of these indictments is decisive and deserved, underlining that despite the protection they enjoy from Serbia, sooner or later they will be forced to appear before the state authorities of Kosovo.

Because the trial will be held in absentia, Dashevci tells ‘Bota sot’ that it is obvious that they do not feel comfortable or at ease with the actions they are accused of.

“The signal sent by raising the indictment against Milan Radoicic and 19 other persons for war crimes, especially considering his role in recent security developments in northern Kosovo, is clear and justified. Despite the fact that they are absent, sooner or later, with a change of establishment in Serbia, since it is well known that they have protection there, they will have the obligation to hand them over to our state and judicial authorities. These serious criminal offenses never become statute-barred. Given that the Prosecution has requested trial in absentia, this has its effect on the suspects; they do not feel at all comfortable or at ease, the crimes weigh heavily on them. They remain only in Serbia, because the process of Kosovo’s efforts for justice and international cooperation for the arrest of the accused does not stop. Wherever they are and wherever there is an opportunity to catch them, they are arrested and brought to justice for the crimes they are suspected of having committed, regardless of where or who it is,” declared Dashevci.

Furthermore, he adds that justice must reach them wherever they are.

“It is a very good job by our institutions in tracking down those who caused these horrific massacres. Truth and evidence are on our side, and I believe that justice must and will find them wherever they are, sooner or later, whether with a trial in absentia or in court sessions in their presence,” concluded the expert.

We recall that in April 2025, the Basic Prosecution in Gjakova had issued an arrest warrant for Radoicic and 19 other Serbs, on suspicion of involvement in the murder of civilians in Gjakova, whose remains were later discovered in a mass grave in Serbia.

In the reasoning for the arrest warrant, it was explained that during 1998-99, in the area called ‘Taliq Bridge’ in Gjakova, from 7 to 10 May 1999, members of the Serbian armed and police forces in uniform, including the defendants, had started to search houses one by one, ‘violently and with threats forcing out all persons present, separating men from women and children, and then killed a total of 106 Albanian civilians. After the conflict, their bodies were found in a mass grave in Batajnica, Serbia.’

Also, in the documentation for the arrest warrant, it was stated that this group of persons, of which Radoicic is a part, from 7 May 1999 to 10 May of the same year, had detained and imprisoned over 300 Albanian civilians, who were held in ‘improvised prisons, without humane treatment, lacking basic needs, proper food, hygiene, and medical assistance. Later, a large part of these prisoners were transferred to various prisons in Kosovo.’

Finally, as the Basic Court of Gjakova announced, these individuals were released after June 1999, with the assistance of international organizations.

Meanwhile, journalist Gëzim Olluri assesses that such judicial processes function as institutional instruments for preserving collective memory.

According to him, the processing of evidence gathered in the field in the legal sphere gives a juridical form to the testimonies of war.

“Although belated, the filing of indictments of this nature carries a moral and historical weight regarding Kosovo’s past. Such trials serve as institutional mechanisms for preserving our collective memory, ensuring that tragedies like the Gjakova case in this context do not fade over time,” declared Olluri for “Bota sot”.

He added that treating evidence from the field on the legal plane gives legal form to war testimonies, proving that confronting the past is not achieved without punishing criminals and without the aggressor acknowledging the truth. The discoveries that are made regarding war crimes take on a new dimension when handled by institutions and serve as an indisputable archive for future generations.

According to Olluri, bringing the executors of crime and criminals to justice and punishing them somewhat eases the suffering of the families of the victims.

He thinks that the indictment should not be perceived as a simple judicial process, but should be considered as evidence of Serbia’s genocidal intentions.

Olluri adds that the importance of trials of this nature exceeds the limits of an ordinary criminal proceeding.

“Bringing the perpetrators of crime and criminals to justice, as well as their punishment by justice institutions, alleviates somewhat the pain of family members who lost their loved ones during the war from the occupying forces of Serbia,” he continued.

Olluri concluded by saying that beyond the criminal prosecution of the executioners (understandably, the final trial must be awaited), this process constitutes an act of honor for the victims. In this case, the indictment for the murder of 107 Albanian civilians in Gjakova should not be seen as an ordinary judicial process, but should be considered as proof of Serbia’s genocidal intentions. The weight of trials of this nature goes beyond the limits of an ordinary criminal procedure. The confrontation of societies with the past is a precondition for political stability, and there can be no sincere negotiations with Serbia if the latter does not take responsibility for the genocide committed against Albanians.