Prishtina, July 28, 2025 — The Basic Court in Prishtina has sentenced Ivica Rajković and Dragan Denić to 15 years in prison each for war crimes against the civilian population, including sexual violence committed during the war in Kosovo.
The trial was held in absentia.
According to the indictment, the two were accused of sexually assaulting an Albanian woman during the war, participating in the forced expulsion of Albanian civilians, looting their property, and inflicting both physical and psychological violence on civilians.
Kosovo’s Special Prosecution welcomed the verdict:
“Today’s decision marks an important step toward strengthening the rule of law and delivering justice for victims of sexual violence during the Kosovo war,” the office said in a statement.
The prosecution also encouraged citizens, institutions, and survivors of sexual violence to continue reporting such cases.
The indictment against Rajković and Denić was filed in November 2023. It alleges that, as members of the Serbian Ministry of Interior’s police forces, following the start of NATO’s bombing campaign on March 24, 1999, the accused took part in a “widespread and systematic attack by Serbian military, police, and paramilitary forces against the Albanian civilian population” in the municipality of Pristina. In collaboration with other unit members, they allegedly committed forced displacement, looting, physical and psychological abuse, and sexual violence.
This case marks the third conviction related to wartime sexual violence in Kosovo. According to data presented by Kosovo institutions, approximately 20,000 cases of sexual violence were committed by Serbian forces during the 1998–1999 war.
Trials in absentia have been possible since legal amendments introduced in 2022. Under these changes, courts are permitted to proceed only after all efforts to ensure the presence of the accused have been exhausted.
