The Specialized Chambers in The Hague on November 5, 2020 made public the indictment against the former KLA leaders Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selim and Jakup Krasniqi.
The aggravating crimes against them relate to "war crimes, illegal or arbitrary detention, cruel treatment, torture and unlawful killing and crimes against humanity of imprisonment, other inhumane acts, torture, unlawful killing, enforced disappearance of persons and stalking", which according to the Specialized Chambers, were committed between March 1998 and September 1999.
The Specialized Chambers claim that for these crimes, Thaçi and others "bear criminal responsibility as individuals on the basis of various forms of criminal responsibility for the crimes presented in the indictment, which were committed in the context of a non-international armed conflict in Kosovo and in in the framework of a widespread and systematic attack against persons suspected of being opponents of the KLA", writes KP.
The defendants, it is further stated in the indictment, "as superiors, are responsible for the crimes committed by their subordinates. They knew or had reason to believe that the crimes charged in this indictment would be committed or had been committed by their subordinates and failed to take appropriate action to prevent such crimes or to punish the perpetrators of such crimes."
On November 5, 2020, Thaçi, Veseli, and Selimi were transferred to the detention center of the Specialized Chambers based in The Hague, while Krasniqi was transferred the day before, on November 4. While the judicial process against Thaçi and others started on April 3, 2023.
Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi pleaded not guilty to all counts of the indictment, charged by the Office of the Specialized Prosecutor, related to war crimes.
