Kosovo’s Parliament Speaker Dimal Basha addressed the media today, firmly rejecting claims that he contributed to a controversial paper criticizing the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA).
During the press conference, Basha clarified that his involvement was limited to Chapter 3, which focused on the spread of radical Islam in Southeastern Europe, with a specific focus on Kosovo. He emphasized that he never wrote anything against the KLA and expressed respect for the sacrifices made by its members.
Basha Responds to Allegations
Basha described the accusations as “low and misleading” and stated:
- His student research in 2012 addressed only the issue of Islamic fundamentalist penetration in the region, specifically Kosovo.
- His master’s thesis in 2013 also focused solely on this topic.
- Professors who supervised his research confirmed that he did not write any part of the sections attributed to him in other reports.
Basha highlighted that in 2010 he publicly opposed the Dick Marty report, arguing that it would harm Kosovo. He stressed:
“As Parliament Speaker and as a citizen, I hold the KLA’s struggle as sacred. At no point have I written anything contrary to this value, and I distance myself from those who do.”
He further criticized media outlets for what he described as “false reporting” and called for accurate coverage.
