One day after the first-instance ruling in The Hague, which sentenced four former KLA leaders to a combined 81 years in prison, Hashim Thaçi has responded through a post published by his lead lawyer on the social media platform X.
In the post, Thaçi expresses his gratitude for the support that he, Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi have received from the people of Kosovo and the international community. He also calls on the people of Kosovo to remain peaceful in response to the ruling.
Thaçi’s defense team announced that it will appeal the first-instance judgment before the Appeals Panel of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, arguing that the judgment contains “significant errors of law and fact” which, according to the defense, undermined the fairness of the proceedings.
According to the defense, concerns were raised throughout the trial regarding procedural fairness, particularly the extent of questioning conducted directly by members of the Trial Panel. The lawyers argue that the manner of the judicial interventions “did not give the appearance of impartiality” and that they went beyond the bounds of a neutral search for the truth.
The defense also argues that the Trial Panel’s findings of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt were based on insufficient and uncorroborated evidence.
Full statement
“Hashim Thaçi wishes to express his sincere gratitude for the overwhelming support that he, Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi have received from the people of Kosovo and the international community, and calls upon the people of Kosovo to remain peaceful in response to yesterday’s injustice.
Mr. Thaçi’s lawyers will appeal yesterday’s First Instance Judgment before the Appeals Panel of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC), arguing that there were significant errors of law and fact that undermined the fairness of the proceedings.
Throughout the trial, the Defense repeatedly raised concerns regarding procedural fairness, including the extensive questioning conducted directly by members of the Trial Panel in a manner that did not give the appearance of impartiality. The Defense maintains that the judicial interventions went beyond the bounds of a neutral search for the truth, undermining the appearance of impartiality required under international standards of justice. This lack of impartiality now permeates the Trial Panel’s Judgment.
The Defense argues that the Trial Panel’s findings of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt are based on insufficient and uncorroborated evidence. Furthermore, yesterday the Trial Panel publicly stated that Mr. Thaçi was involved in the killing of Behajdin Allaqi, after previously ordering all parties in this case not to publicly discuss Mr. Allaqi’s case during court proceedings and after ordering that all evidence relating to the case remain confidential.
Thus, the Trial Panel has publicly found Mr. Thaçi guilty of a killing while the evidence on which that finding was based has been withheld from public scrutiny. Mr. Thaçi would welcome such public scrutiny of the evidence.
The Defense will appeal the Trial Panel’s decisions on the grounds of violations of his fundamental rights to a fair trial, as guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights and the Constitution of Kosovo. Mr. Thaçi expressly denies any involvement in killings.
Adherence to rigorous standards of procedural fairness is essential to maintaining public confidence in international criminal justice institutions. The Defense will formally file its Notice of Appeal before the Appeals Panel to correct these factual, legal and procedural errors,” the post by Thaçi’s lawyer reads.
The post Thaçi reacts after The Hague ruling: I deny any involvement in killings, I will appeal the verdict appeared first on Euronews Albania.
