During a press conference in Belgrade, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić commented on the decision to sentence the former KLA leaders to a combined 81 years in prison, urging Serbs not to consider the process over and not to celebrate. He continued to insist that the judgment did not include what he described as the most serious allegations Serbia has made against the KLA.
“We have no reason either to rejoice or to be saddened. Even if the ruling is upheld, which I find difficult to believe, there is also a third instance – the Constitutional Court of so-called Kosovo, which could send the case back for retrial. Therefore, we should not greet this decision with euphoria, but should remain patient,” he said.
Vučić publicly displayed photographs of Serbs who had been killed, claiming that those responsible for their deaths had not been punished. Vučić based his argument on the fact that the Specialist Chambers dismissed six counts of crimes against humanity. According to him, this shows that the court “did not want to undermine the credibility of the KLA” and did not accept the narrative that Serbia has maintained for years.
“It is important to emphasize that the trial panel did not find systematic attacks against the civilian population. They did not want to undermine the credibility of the KLA. What is not included in this ruling? Crimes against humanity. All six counts of the indictment were dismissed. None of the crimes committed against Serbs after June 20, 1999, were taken into account. There is also no accountability for the ‘Yellow House,’” he said.
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