FOCUS – Germany urges respect for the Specialist verdict: “The KLA was not on trial”

Germany has called for respect for the verdict of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers against the former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), stressing that the judicial process was not against the KLA or its goal of an independent Kosovo.

Germany’s ambassador to Kosovo, Reiner Rudolph, reacted after the announcement of the verdict against former KLA leaders Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi.

The Kosovo Specialist Chambers found all four former leaders guilty of war crimes.

Hashim Thaçi and Jakup Krasniqi were sentenced to 25 years in prison each, Kadri Veseli to 18 years and Rexhep Selimi to 13 years in prison.

The court, meanwhile, acquitted them of charges of crimes against humanity, as the Prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt the existence of a widespread or systematic attack against the civilian population.

After the announcement of the decision, Ambassador Rudolph said Germany has supported the work of the Specialist Chambers since their establishment and considers it a contribution to confronting war crimes, strengthening the rule of law and bringing Kosovo closer to the European Union.

According to Rudolph, during the announcement of the verdict, the presiding judge made it clear that the KLA was not on trial and that its goal of an independent Kosovo was not the object of the judicial process either.

The German ambassador also stressed that the establishment of the Specialist Chambers and the cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) show, in his view, Kosovo’s responsibility to address war crimes within the institutions of an independent and sovereign state.

Rudolph underlined that the Sept. 16 verdict does not absolve Yugoslav actors of responsibility for the armed conflict and grave human rights violations against Kosovo’s population in the late 1990s.

He also referred to proceedings and investigations previously carried out by international courts and the international community’s intervention in Kosovo.

“We call on all parties to respect the verdict and the dignity of the victims,” the German ambassador said.

The verdict announced today, Sept. 16, is a first-instance decision.

The trial of Thaçi, Veseli, Selimi and Krasniqi had begun in April 2023 and included charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, allegedly committed during the Kosovo conflict.

According to official data from the Specialist Chambers, 156 victims took part in the process and testimony from more than 130 witnesses was heard.

The German ambassador’s reaction comes on a day when other international actors have also called for respect for the decision and for avoiding inflammatory rhetoric after the announcement of the verdict.