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Thousands rallied in Pristina, Kosovo, in support of former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) commanders, including former President Hashim Thaci, on Saturday, ahead of a Sept. 16 verdict in their trial in The Hague, Netherlands.
Crowds filling squares in central Pristina, at a demonstration organized by the KLA War Veterans Association, showed support for KLA commanders on trial in The Hague: Thaci, Jakup Krasniqi, Kadri Veseli and Rexhep Selimi.
Carrying banners reading "No peace without justice," "Freedom for freedom fighters," "In the name of the people, declare them innocent," and "Bring our heroes home," protesters chanted slogans calling for the commanders' release.
KLA War Veterans Association President Hysni Gucati said only Serbia and Russia would benefit from such an injustice.
"Kosovo's freedom was won through sacrifice. No courtroom can erase this truth, and no political agenda can criminalize our just struggle. We want justice, not a rewriting of our history," he said.
Prosecutors have sought 45-year prison sentences for each of the KLA commanders on trial in The Hague.
A verdict in the case is expected on Sept. 16. Separately, a second trial against Thaci in The Hague on charges of witness intimidation is ongoing.
More than 10,000 Kosovars, most of them ethnic Albanians, were killed, and over 1 million people from different ethnic groups were forced from their homes during the 1998-1999 Kosovo War, which ended with a NATO ground and air campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, formed by Serbia and Montenegro.
Kosovar Albanians formed the KLA in the 1990s to resist Yugoslav forces and establish Kosovo as an independent state. After the war ended, the KLA was disbanded, with its commanders and fighters joining the country's newly formed security institutions.
Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia on Feb. 17, 2008, though Serbia still considers Kosovo part of its own territory.
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