The defense of Xhelal Sveçla, Kosovo’s acting Minister of Internal Affairs, has challenged the decision of the Basic Court in Pristina, describing it as unusual.

His lawyer, Laur Prenaj, said he would file an appeal once he receives the full decision and the court’s reasoning.

The Basic Court in Pristina found Sveçla guilty of releasing tear gas in the Kosovo Assembly in 2018.

Prenaj said the court had announced only the verdict, while its reasoning has yet to be published. According to him, this constitutes an unusual practice, and the defense will exercise its right to appeal once it has received the reasoned decision.

The lawyer also stressed that the indictment against Sveçla had contained problems from the initial stage of the proceedings.

He added that the defense is awaiting the court’s reasoning to understand the grounds on which the decision was made and the basis for the indictment, which, according to him, had already been challenged during the initial hearing.

The decision on Sveçla’s sentence is expected to be announced on September 8 at 9:00 a.m., when the next hearing in the case is scheduled.

A week earlier, the court acquitted the acting Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kosovo, Glauk Konjufca, who had faced a similar indictment for releasing tear gas during an Assembly session in 2016.

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The Basic Court in Prishtina has found acting Minister of Internal Affairs, Xhelal Sveçla, guilty for the use of tear gas in the chamber of the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo on March 21, 2018.

Sveçla was found guilty for the criminal offense “Use of a weapon or dangerous instrument.” The verdict was issued on Wednesday by the presiding judge, Sabit Sadikaj.

Regarding the charge of “Obstructing an official person in performing official duties,” the Court issued a rejecting verdict, as the criminal prosecution for this offense had become statute-barred.

The sentence for the offense for which Sveçla was found guilty will be determined after a special hearing, where the parties will present mitigating and aggravating circumstances. This hearing has been scheduled for September 8, 2026, Judge Sadikaj announced.

The accused was not present at the hearing, while his lawyer, Laur Prenaj, attended on his behalf.

The proceedings against Sveçla were separated from those against the other accused, after he missed the hearing on January 16, 2026, and notified the Court via e-mail that he was abroad.

At the hearing on April 10, 2026, Sveçla pleaded not guilty to the charge brought against him.

Meanwhile, during the hearing on August 28, 2026, prosecutor Avni Namani announced that the Prosecution had amended the enacting terms of the indictment against Sveçla.

According to the amended version of the indictment, on March 21, 2018, from 12:10 to 15:40, during an extraordinary plenary session in the chamber of the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo, Sveçla was suspected of having used a canister of tear gas containing the chemical agent CS.

The Prosecution claims that he activated the canister on several occasions and threw it inside the chamber, without warning and without enabling the persons present to leave the premises.

As a result of this action, according to the indictment, the irritant gas spread throughout the enclosed spaces of the chamber. Those present, fearing for their health and safety, were forced to abandon it, and the session was interrupted.

Namani stated that Sveçla is being prosecuted for “Use of a weapon or dangerous instrument,” an offense stipulated in Article 375, paragraph 2 of the Criminal Code of 2012. The Prosecution has dropped the prosecution for the offense of “Obstructing an official person in performing official duties,” due to statutory limitations, while the rest of the indictment has remained unchanged.

Involved in the same case are acting Minister of Environment, Spatial Planning and Infrastructure, Fitore Pacolli-Dalipi, former Vetëvendosje MP, Salih Zyba, as well as former Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) MP, Drita Millaku.

The indictment against Sveçla, Millaku, Zyba, and Pacolli-Dalipi was confirmed by the Basic Court in Prishtina on June 6, 2024, and its decision was later upheld by the Court of Appeals.

At the initial hearing, held on March 26, 2024, all four accused pleaded not guilty to deploying tear gas in the Assembly.

In addition to this offense, they were also accused of “Obstructing an official person in performing official duties.” However, at the initial hearing, Judge Sabit Sadikaj announced that the absolute statutory limitation for criminal prosecution had been reached for this offense.

According to the indictment obtained by “Betimi për Drejtësi,” which was filed on July 29, 2019, and about which “Betimi për Drejtësi” had exclusively reported in October 2021, Sveçla, Millaku, Zyba, and Pacolli-Dalipi were suspected of having, on March 21, 2018, from around 12:10 to 15:40, ignited several canisters of tear gas and thrown them into the chamber of the Kosovo Assembly during the plenary session.

The indictment emphasized that, due to the gas, all MPs were forced to leave the chamber, preventing the continuation of the session.

For this action, each of them is individually accused of “Use of a weapon or dangerous instrument,” under Article 375, paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code. This offense carries a prison sentence of one to eight years.

Meanwhile, according to the second point of the indictment, the accused were also individually suspected of “Obstructing an official person in performing official duties,” under Article 409, paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code, with the claim that they obstructed the deputies of the Kosovo Assembly in the exercise of their official duties. This offense carries a prison sentence of three months to three years.

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The decision was made public on Friday, 03.07.2026, by Judge Avni Syla.

According to this judgment, Ekrem Bajrovic is required to pay 300 euros in court flat-rate expenses, as well as 100 euros to the crime victims’ fund.

By a separate ruling, the defendant’s detention has been extended until this judgment becomes final.

The injured parties have been instructed to pursue their property-related legal claim through regular civil proceedings.

Parties who do not agree with this decision have the right to appeal within 30 days.

Ekrem Bajrovic is charged by the Special Prosecution with “war crimes against the civilian population” in Istog and the surrounding villages during 1998-1999.

According to the indictment, during the war in Kosovo in 1998-1999 in Istog and the surrounding areas, Bajrovic contributed to the implementation of repressive measures that included killings, raids, beatings, mistreatment, arrest, torture, and inhuman treatment against the civilian population.

According to the prosecution’s claims, he carried out these acts as a member of the Serbian police and military forces, both individually and in co-perpetration with other persons.

The indictment states that on 08.05.1999, in the village of Staradran, a column of civilians moving toward Albania was stopped by Serbian police and military forces, of which Bajrovic was also a part, and the boys and men were separated from the rest of the group.

According to the indictment, they were first stripped of their money and valuables, and were then taken to the yard of a person’s house, where they were lined up one by one with their hands raised and their faces toward the yard wall, while Serbian forces physically attacked them and beat them with various tools.

Also according to the indictment, during this time the Serbian police and military forces addressed them with the words: “Where is NATO?” and “Where is the KLA?”.

Further, the indictment stresses that they were taken to a house, where at least 16 Albanian civilians were executed. Only one of them managed to survive, although wounded.

Also, according to the indictment, on 07.05.1999 the accused participated in the arrest, kidnapping, and mistreatment of 84 Albanian civilians, who were initially separated from the column and deprived of all their money and valuables.

After this, they were taken to Gurakoc, to a premises, where according to the indictment they were mistreated and tortured in an inhuman manner, and later transferred to the Police Station in Gurakoc.

The indictment says the column was led by the accused Ekrem Bajrovic, of Bosniak nationality, who struck one person with the back of an automatic rifle on the right side below the ribs.

Then, according to the indictment, after the civilians were placed in the Police Station, they were tortured in an inhuman manner and were also subjected to psychological violence through death threats. The indictment further states that, in addition to serious bodily injuries, they suffered trauma and health consequences.

According to the indictment, these actions are punishable under domestic laws, as well as the International Geneva Convention.

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