Endrit Thaçi, the son of former President Hashim Thaçi, and Klestor Veseli, the son of former Assembly Speaker Kadri Veseli, also took part in the protest held on Thursday evening in Skanderbeg Square in Pristina.

The gathering began at 9:00 p.m. under the slogan “Not in my name,” through which participants objected to the trial panel’s formulation that the judgment had been issued “in the name of the people of Kosovo.”

The presence of Endrit Thaçi and Klestor Veseli was accompanied by chants from citizens, who shouted “KLA, KLA” and “The people are with the KLA,” expressing their dissatisfaction with the decision of the Specialist Chambers in The Hague.

The two stood alongside citizens just one day after attending in The Hague the announcement of the judgment against their fathers and two other former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

Participants in the gathering carried national flags, KLA flags and banners supporting Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi. The protest was organized following widespread reactions prompted by the decision of September 16.

The Specialist Chambers sentenced Hashim Thaçi and Jakup Krasniqi to 25 years in prison each, Kadri Veseli to 18 years, and Rexhep Selimi to 13 years. The defendants’ defense teams have announced that they will challenge the judgment before the Court of Appeals.

The decision has sparked strong reactions in Kosovo, Albania and among the diaspora. Political representatives, organizations emerging from the war and many citizens have opposed the sentences, arguing that criminal responsibility must be addressed individually and that the KLA’s war of liberation cannot be placed on the same level as the crimes of the Serbian regime.

For their part, the Specialist Chambers have stressed that the trial addressed the individual responsibility of the accused, not the KLA as an organization or the character of its war.

Thursday’s gathering was the latest protest organized in Pristina following the announcement of the judgment. Citizens called for opposition to the decision to continue through democratic means and the appeals process.

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