The request emphasizes that Thaçi poses no flight risk and is willing to accept strict restrictions, including remaining within Kosovo’s territory and surrendering his passport.

The former president has also pledged to refrain from making any public statements in the media or on social networks and not to discuss his case with anyone other than his defense team.

Conditions in the request:

Mr. Thaçi is prepared to comply with conditions similar to those imposed on his co-accused, described as “a tested and appropriate framework for temporary release”,⁵⁵ or with any other conditions the Single Trial Judge (STJ) considers appropriate, namely:

a) Mr. Thaçi shall not leave the territory of Kosovo unless authorized to do so by a competent judicial body of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC);

b) Mr. Thaçi shall surrender to the Registrar his passport and any other travel documents, including visas and any identification document that may be used for travel. This obligation also extends to any new passport or travel document that may be issued to him by the Kosovo authorities or other authorities after this decision is issued. If Mr. Thaçi’s presence is required at the KSC premises, the Registry shall make his passport available to him solely for that purpose. Upon his return to Kosovo, the passport shall again be surrendered to the Registrar;

c) Mr. Thaçi shall provide the address where he will reside in Kosovo throughout the judicial proceedings and shall seek permission from the KSC before any change of residence;

d) Mr. Thaçi shall deposit with the Registrar, as a precondition for his release, a financial guarantee in the form of a monetary transfer of 50,000 euros into the Registry’s account;

e) Mr. Thaçi shall refrain from any contact or communication, direct or indirect, through any other person, of any kind and by any means, with his co-accused, Bashkim Smakaj, Isni Kilaj, Fadil Fazliu and Hajredin Kuçi;

f) Mr. Thaçi shall refrain from any contact or communication, direct or indirect, through any other person, of any kind and by any means, with any person he knows to be a witness in this or any other case before the KSC;

g) Mr. Thaçi shall refrain from any contact or communication, direct or indirect, through any other person, with any person alleged in the Amended Confirmed Indictment to have participated in or assisted with the obstructive conduct at issue in this case;

h) Mr. Thaçi shall not discuss the substance of his case with anyone other than designated members of his defense team, including close family members, and shall inform anyone who asks questions about his case that he is subject to such a prohibition imposed by the KSC;

i) Mr. Thaçi shall refrain from making any public statement, directly or indirectly, for example through family members, in the media and/or on social networks concerning the KSC, the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office (SPO) and/or any proceedings before the KSC;

j) Mr. Thaçi shall report weekly to the Kosovo Police for verification, in accordance with procedures established by the Registrar;

k) Mr. Thaçi shall surrender himself to KSC detention if ordered to do so and shall attend every court hearing as requested by the KSC. Any failure to appear before the KSC as ordered shall result in the forfeiture of the financial guarantee referred to in subparagraph (d), as well as the immediate issuance of an arrest warrant;

l) Mr. Thaçi shall notify the Registrar of the address where he will stay while in the territory of the Host State to attend court hearings and shall comply with any restrictions on his movement within the territory of the Host State that may be imposed during his stay there;

m) Mr. Thaçi shall respect the confidential classification of the decision on his release and shall not publish, disclose or discuss its contents in any way, directly or indirectly, with any person, including any accused person at the Detention Facility and members of his family, except for his counsel and designated members of the defense team, until the decision is made public by order of the STJ; and

n) Mr. Thaçi shall comply with any other decision, order or instruction of the Single Trial Judge and the Registrar,” the request states.

The post Hashim Thaçi’s Defense Seeks Conditional Release, Offers Financial Guarantee and Passport Surrender appeared first on Albeu.com.

As Anila Hoxha reports, in the arguments presented in the request for reconsideration, the defense claims that the case is mainly legal and constitutional in nature, and that the Supreme Court therefore has the authority to resolve it definitively, since no new evidence or reassessment of the facts is needed.

According to the defense, the court must assess whether the “prison arrest” measure remains necessary and proportionate, whether procedural risks have been argued concretely, and whether alternative security measures have been seriously considered.

The request also raises the issue of Veliaj being kept in a glass cage during court hearings. The defense argues that this practice violates human dignity and runs counter to the principle of the presumption of innocence, asking for him to be removed from the “cage” during judicial proceedings.

Another argument concerns the mayoral mandate. According to the defense, Veliaj was elected to a four-year term, from June 2023 to June 2027, and the continuation of his arrest is making it practically impossible for him to perform his duties. This, it says, affects not only Veliaj’s personal freedom, but also the right of the citizens who voted for their representative.

The defense warns that sending the case back for reconsideration in the lower courts would cause further procedural delays, risking that any final decision would be issued only after a significant part of the mandate had elapsed, which would make the effective restoration of the allegedly violated rights impossible.

For these reasons, the defense is asking the Supreme Court to exercise its authority, change the security measure, and order the immediate release of Erion Veliaj.

The post Veliaj seeks immediate release, defense: Supreme Court should change the security measure and remove him from the glass cage appeared first on Albeu.com.