What Happens to Thaçi’s Detention if He Is Acquitted?

On September 16, the Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague will announce the verdict in the case against four former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army: Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi.

The trial on charges related to war crimes and crimes against humanity, allegedly committed during the war in Kosovo and immediately after its end, has been held for three years at the institution officially known as the Specialist Chambers and Specialist Prosecutor’s Office of Kosovo. For each of the four defendants, the prosecution has sought a sentence of 45 years in prison.

It is not yet known how the trial will conclude. However, at the same court, a separate legal case against Kosovo’s former president, Hashim Thaçi, for obstruction of justice is being heard simultaneously.

It is precisely this second case that raises the question of whether Thaçi would be released from detention immediately if he is acquitted of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The Specialist Chambers’ Rules of Procedure and Evidence stipulate that an accused person held in detention must be released immediately after being acquitted. An exception applies when the person is lawfully detained or is serving a sentence for other criminal offenses, different from those for which he or she has been acquitted.

Michael Doyle, a spokesperson for the Specialist Chambers, told Radio Free Europe that Thaçi’s detention was ordered by two different authorities: by the Trial Panel in the war crimes and crimes against humanity case, and by the single judge handling the separate obstruction-of-justice case.

According to Doyle, if Thaçi is acquitted in the war crimes and crimes against humanity trial, the decision on whether he should remain in detention will belong to the single judge reviewing the obstruction-of-justice case.

The reasonableness and justification for continuing the detention must be reassessed by the single judge every two months. Doyle also explained that the matter may be reviewed at the request of the accused if circumstances have changed.

On July 31, the single judge issued the tenth consecutive decision extending the detention. In his assessment, there continues to be a risk that Thaçi could interfere with proceedings or commit further criminal offenses.

The same decision also set the deadlines for the next review of the detention measure. Thaçi has the right to submit filings by September 7. If he does not exercise this opportunity, the prosecution must present its position by September 14, while Thaçi’s deadline to respond expires on September 21.

Thaçi has been held at the detention center in The Hague since November 2020, when he was arrested on war crimes charges. Since then, all requests by his defense for his release from detention have been rejected. The court also rejected a bail offer of 50,000 euros, accompanied by several conditions that Thaçi had pledged to respect in exchange for his release.

Former President Hashim Thaçi, former parliamentary speakers Jakup Krasniqi and Kadri Veseli, and former lawmaker Rexhep Selimi have pleaded not guilty to charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The indictment alleges that they were part of a “joint criminal enterprise” aimed at securing control through violence and intimidation against opponents. Serbs, Roma and Albanians who did not support the KLA are among those identified as victims. At least 102 people are alleged to have been killed, while more than 20 remain missing. The prosecution also holds the defendants responsible for offenses committed by their subordinates.

Thaçi, who previously also served as Kosovo’s prime minister, has described the allegations in the indictment as “completely untrue, absurd and deeply offensive.”

Several prominent figures from Western diplomacy and security who were active during the war testified for the defense. They included former U.S. State Department spokesman James Rubin and former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe Wesley Clark.

In their testimony, they said that the KLA did not operate as a centralized organization and that the influence and control exercised by the defendants were more limited than presented in the indictment.

The trial in this case concluded in February of this year. All four defendants have been in detention for nearly six years.

While this trial was still ongoing, the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office in The Hague filed obstruction-of-justice charges in 2024 against Thaçi and four other people. The other defendants are former Justice Minister Hajredin Kuçi; former head of the Kosovo Intelligence Agency Bashkim Smakaj; former mayor of Malisheva Isni Kilaj; and Fadil Fazliu.

According to these charges, from April to November 2023, they influenced the testimony of people called by prosecutors in the war crimes trial against Thaçi and the three other former KLA leaders.

In this case, Thaçi faces three charges of attempting to obstruct official persons in the performance of their duties through participation in the joint actions of a group. He is also charged with four counts of violating the confidentiality of the proceedings and four additional counts of contempt of court.

All the other people charged with obstruction of justice, with the exception of Thaçi, are conducting their defense while at liberty.

This trial is also nearing its conclusion, with closing statements scheduled to be presented on September 10, 11 and 14.

The Specialist Chambers were established by Kosovo’s Assembly in 2015. They are part of Kosovo’s judicial system but operate in the Netherlands with international staff.

Their mandate includes investigating alleged crimes committed by KLA members against ethnic minorities and political opponents between January 1998 and December 2000.

In Kosovo, the trial of the former KLA leaders has been opposed because it has been viewed as a one-sided proceeding that does not address crimes committed by Serbs in Kosovo.

Protests against the trial of the former KLA commanders have been held in Pristina, The Hague, Tirana and other cities, accompanied by calls for justice.

The court has already issued several convictions, both in war crimes cases and in cases related to obstruction of justice. / RFE