Kosovo's former president jailed for 25 years over war crimes

Kosovo's former president Hashim Thaci has been jailed for 25 years after being found criminally responsible for war crimes following a trial in The Hague.

Thaci, 58, was convicted by a panel of judges of murder, torture, cruel treatment and illegal detention, as top commander of the ​ethnic Albanian separatist Kosovo Liberation ​Army (KLA) during the territory's violent ‌break ⁠from Serbia in the 1990s.

The tribunal said he was guilty of the ​murder ​of ⁠96 political opponents and perceived collaborators ​with Serbian security ​forces ⁠by Kosovo Liberation Army forces during the conflict.

Thaci was also convicted for the arbitrary illegal detention of 385 people, the torture ‌of 303 people, and the cruel treatment of about 50 people.

The court said he had "actively participated in and encouraged crimes".

"The scale and nature ​of the crimes committed were very serious," presiding judge Charles Smith said.

"The so-called intelligence on which many of these victims were arrested, detained and killed was little more than unverified rumours. Based on that information, victims were called and described as spies ​and collaborators and violently treated."

The American judge said that the trial was "not about the legitimacy of the Kosovo Liberation Army" or its ultimate goal of securing independence for Kosovo.

Thaci, who had denied the charges, stood in silence ‌as he was convicted and sentenced. He will be able to lodge an appeal against the decision.

He was facing multiple counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity alongside three other former high-ranking commanders of the (KLA).

Prosecutors at the Kosovo Specialist Chambers court in The Hague had asked for a maximum 45-year prison sentence for Thaci and the other defendants - Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi. They had all denied the charges.

Veseli was jailed for 18 years, Selimi for 13 years and Krasniqi was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

The four were all acquitted on six charges of crimes against humanity because the judges said prosecutors were unable to prove that crimes were committed as part of a widespread and systematic attack on civilians.

The ruling was followed closely in Kosovo and Serbia, where the legacy of the 1998-99 conflict and Kosovo's 2008 declaration of independence remains a dividing force between ethnic Kosovo Albanians ​and Serbs.

Thaci is a revered figure among ​many Kosovo Albanians. The tribunal itself was hugely unpopular ​in Kosovo.

"Throughout my life, I stood with the people of Kosovo defending freedom, life and dignity. I was always guided by the Western ideals of democracy, equality and justice," Thaci, who resigned from office nearly six years ago to face the charges, told judges in February at the end of his almost three-year trial.

Thousands rallied in Pristina, Kosovo's capital, in support of the four men ahead of the verdicts.

Crowds filled a central square, with many waving red and black Albanian flags. "In the name of the people, declare them innocent," one banner read.

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As the verdict was read out, a mass of people watching on a big screen booed and chanted: "Thaci, Thaci."

Police said preparations had been made with foreign peacekeeping forces in case there were violent demonstrations, with images showing riot police standing guard in front of supporters.

Albania's prime minister, Edi Rama, posted a picture on social media ​of a circle of barbed wire across a map of Europe, with the caption: "Unbelievable".

(c) Sky News 2026: Kosovo's former president jailed for 25 years over war crimes