The defense of the former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) has begun presenting their closing statements in the trial at the Special Court in The Hague.
The first to speak was Luka Misetic, the lawyer representing Hashim Thaçi.
He opened by stating that “Hashim Thaçi is innocent.”
In the two preceding days, prosecutors from the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office delivered the prosecution’s closing arguments.
Yesterday, the Victims’ Counsel also delivered their closing statement.
From today, the lawyers representing Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi, and Jakup Krasniqi will present their respective closing arguments.
The Specialist Prosecutor’s Office has requested a sentence of 45 years’ imprisonment for each of the former KLA leaders.
Once all closing statements are delivered, which is expected to be completed by 18 February, the case will move to the trial panel, which has three months to issue a verdict.
Thaçi, Veseli, Selimi, and Krasniqi have been held in pre-trial detention at the Special Court in The Hague since the beginning of November 2020, accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Specialist Prosecutor’s Office alleges that they either participated in or should have been aware of these crimes.
