The Hague, July 22, 2025 – During today’s status conference at the Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague, defense lawyer Luka Misetiq, representing former Kosovo President Hashim Thaçi, strongly criticized the judicial panel for allegedly denying the defense team adequate time to prepare its case.
Misetiq accused the Trial Panel of reversing its earlier commitment to provide the defense with 10 weeks of preparation time, reducing the period to just two weeks. He emphasized that this sudden change places an undue burden on the defense team, which he says has been working 12-hour days under pressure.
“The Trial Panel has reduced our preparation time from 10 weeks to 2 weeks,” said Misetiq, asserting that this decision was made without fair consultation or notice. “When have you ever treated the Prosecution like this? When have you imposed such deadlines without hearing their position first?” he asked pointedly.
According to Misetiq, the defense had previously received assurances that the 10-week timeframe would begin after the issuance of the court’s decision and would not include the summer recess. However, the defense claims this timeline was changed unilaterally and without warning between February and June.
The Trial Panel has ordered the defense to begin presenting its case on August 25, 2025, nearly two months earlier than the originally anticipated date of October 15. Misetiq expressed concern that this abrupt change ignores the practical difficulties the defense faces in preparing its witnesses and evidence, especially given the complexity of the case.
“We ask for the opportunity to be heard and to understand why our right to sufficient preparation time has been denied,” Misetiq insisted, warning that the imbalance in procedural fairness undermines the defendants’ right to a fair trial.
The case involves four former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA/UÇK) – Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi, and Rexhep Selimi – all of whom are facing charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. All four have pleaded not guilty.
Since their arrest in November 2020, the defendants have remained in detention in The Hague. The prosecution closed its case in April 2024 after calling 125 witnesses and submitting nearly 3,000 pieces of evidence.
The defense is now scheduled to present its case starting in late August, unless the court reconsiders the timeline following the formal objections raised today.
