March for Freedom” held in Pristina four days before verdict for former KLA leaders

Pristina is hosting the “March for Freedom” today, organized in support of former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army who are on trial in The Hague. The rally is being held just four days before the final verdict is due to be delivered against Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi.

The march is scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. in “Skënderbeu” Square, while participants began gathering in the area earlier.

The march was organized by the civic movement “Freedom Has a Name.” The program includes speeches by the leaders of the Democratic Party of Kosovo and the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, Bedri Hamza and Ardian Gjini, as well as representatives of the movement, war veterans’ associations and the families of fallen soldiers. The event will also feature patriotic songs.

Pristina Mayor Përparim Rama announced that public transport within the capital would be free of charge. Free transport to Pristina has also been arranged from all cities in Kosovo for citizens wishing to take part in the march.

The event is taking place during the final phase of the trial of the four former KLA leaders. The Kosovo Specialist Chambers have scheduled September 16 for the delivery of the verdict, more than three years after the trial began.

Thaçi, Veseli, Selimi and Krasniqi are charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity, but they have all rejected the charges against them.

The prosecution alleges that the accused bear criminal responsibility for crimes committed during the war in Kosovo and northern Albania. The indictment contains six counts of crimes against humanity and four counts of war crimes, while the prosecution has requested sentences of 45 years in prison for each of them.

The four former KLA leaders were arrested in November 2020 and transferred to the detention center of the Specialist Chambers in The Hague. The first trial session was held on April 3, 2023.

Today’s march is not the first time that protests against the Specialist Court or rallies in support of former KLA leaders have been organized in Kosovo.

In April 2023, one day before the trial of Thaçi, Veseli, Selimi and Krasniqi began, thousands of citizens marched in Pristina. They described the trial as unjust and expressed support for the KLA’s war.

On February 17, 2026, the 18th anniversary of Kosovo’s independence, another major rally was organized. Thousands of citizens joined the “Justice, Not Politics” march, held in support of the former KLA leaders.

The event took place as the trial in The Hague was moving toward its conclusion. The prosecution completed its presentation of the case in April 2025, while the defense concluded its case in December of the same year. Closing arguments were presented in February 2026.

The delivery of the verdict was postponed after the hearings concluded. Initially, the verdict had been scheduled for an earlier period of the year, but in July the Specialist Chambers announced that it would be made public on September 16. The postponement was attributed to the complexity of the case and the large volume of evidence.

The September 16 decision is expected to be among the most important judgments of the Specialist Chambers, established in 2015 to handle cases related to allegations of crimes committed by KLA members during and after the 1998-1999 war.