Human rights organization Amnesty International said that the war crimes convictions of former Kosovo President Hashim Thaçi and three other former senior officials of the Kosovo Liberation Army give hope to victims who have waited for justice “for more than two decades.”
Esther Major, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Europe, was quoted as saying this in a statement published on the organization’s website.
She said the rulings “show that senior officials are not above the law” and that they offer hope that “any attempt to obstruct justice, truth and reparations will not be tolerated.”
The Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague found the four former KLA leaders guilty on four counts of war crimes, while acquitting them of crimes against humanity charges.
Hashim Thaçi and Jakup Krasniqi were each sentenced to 25 years in prison, while Kadri Veseli was sentenced to 18 years and Rexhep Selimi to 13 years.
The judgment is a first-instance ruling, and the defense lawyers have announced that they will appeal it.
The United States and other countries have called for the ruling to be respected.
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