Luka Misetic, attorney for Hashim Thaçi, stated at the beginning of his closing statement in the trial of former UÇK leaders at the Special Court in The Hague that his client is innocent.
The lawyer criticized the reasoning of the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office, which has sought 45 years in prison for each of the four accused.
“Hashim Thaçi is innocent,” Misetic said at the outset.
“Before you are four men whom the law requires you to presume innocent,” he added.
Misetic emphasized that this presumption should be the starting point for the court’s reasoning in rendering its decision in this case.
“This is your starting point when you begin your deliberations. We know that at this stage of the proceedings he is innocent, because the law requires you to presume him innocent,” Misetic told the judges.
Once all closing statements are delivered, expected by 18 February, the case will be submitted to the panel of judges, who will have three months to issue a verdict.
Thaçi, Veseli, Selimi, and Krasniqi have been in pre-trial detention at the Special Court in The Hague since early November 2020, accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Specialist Prosecutor’s Office alleges that they were aware—or should have been aware—of these crimes.
