Former Kosovo president Thaci convicted of war crimes, sentenced to 25 years

Sentencing follows three-year Hague trial alongside three co-defendants

The Kosovo Specialist Chambers, an EU-backed court sitting in The Hague, handed down its verdict on Wednesday after a trial that had stretched nearly three years. Thaci stood in silence, wearing a suit and tie, as Presiding Judge Charles Smith read the sentence of 25 years. The four counts on which the former president was convicted were murder, torture, cruel treatment and arbitrary detention, according to the Associated Press.

Three other former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army — Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi — stood trial with Thaci. All four had denied the charges. Prosecutors had asked the court for the maximum sentence of 45 years for each defendant.

Thaci addressed the court in February at the close of the trial. “Throughout my life, I stood with the people of Kosovo defending freedom, life and dignity,” he told the judges. “I was always guided by the Western ideals of democracy, equality and justice.”

In Kosovo, where the four defendants are widely regarded as national heroes, the verdict was preceded by a weekend of public demonstrations. Thousands rallied in central Pristina, many carrying red and black Albanian flags. Portraits of the four men were plastered across the city, accompanied by a digital clock counting down to Wednesday’s verdicts. One banner read: “In the name of the people, declare them innocent.”

Prosecutors at the Specialist Chambers had argued that the defendants, during their time in the KLA, targeted political opponents and civilians they perceived as collaborators and traitors.

The court is staffed largely by international personnel, a decision driven by concerns over witness safety. In 2022, the Specialist Chambers convicted two leaders of a Kosovo war veterans’ association of intimidating witnesses by publicizing leaked confidential documents.

Thaci also faces a separate trial on charges of intimidating witnesses, scheduled to begin later this month.

Thaci was a student when he returned from what he described as political exile in Switzerland to join the KLA’s struggle. His ability to evade Serbian forces during the conflict earned him the nickname “the Snake.” Western leaders invited him to the 1999 peace talks in France in his capacity as political director of the KLA, and he was later seen as a figure who could guide Kosovo toward independence.

Thaci rose to political power in the years after the war, ultimately serving as Kosovo’s president. He resigned from that office nearly six years ago to defend himself before the Specialist Chambers.

The 1998-99 war left roughly 13,000 people dead, most of them ethnic Albanians. A 78-day NATO bombing campaign against Serbian forces ended the fighting, and about one million ethnic Albanian Kosovars were driven from their homes during the conflict. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, a move Belgrade has refused to recognize. Relations between the two countries remain tense, despite years of negotiations mediated by the European Union and supported by the United States.