Former President of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi, has submitted an appeal to the Special Court, requesting the dismissal of the indictment in the case in which he is accused of interfering with justice.
Thaçi filed a new request at the Special Court aiming to overturn the indictment that charges him with obstruction of justice.
The appeal, submitted on August 18, 2025, in The Hague, challenges the “Jurisdiction Decision” issued on June 19 of the same year. According to the defense, the Court acted beyond its competence by allowing the initiation of a new case, known as “Case 12,” alongside the already ongoing proceedings against Thaçi and his former comrades in “Case 06.”
The main arguments presented by Thaçi’s legal team assert that the same factual matters are being addressed in two separate proceedings, which risks contradictory rulings and undermines Thaçi’s presumption of innocence. Furthermore, the defense argues that the judge previously assigned to the case served in two different roles within the same matter—as an investigative judge and as a pre-trial judge—which, according to the defense counsel, is explicitly prohibited by law.
Document: Additionally, the judge’s refusal to review the validity of her own appointment, according to the defense, violates the fundamental rights of the accused in this case.
Based on these arguments, Thaçi’s lawyer, Sophie Menegon, has requested that the Appeals Panel declare that the pre-trial judge was not competent to issue the indictment in Case 12 and, consequently, that the indictment be entirely dismissed.
In total, Hashim Thaçi faces 21 charges at the Special Court, spread across two cases—10 for war crimes and 11 for offenses against the administration of justice.
