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Wesley Clark confirmed as witness in Thaçi's defense

2025-10-24 13:54:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Retired American General Wesley Clark will testify in defense of former Kosovo President Hashim Thaçi, who is accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity at the Kosovo Special Court in The Hague.

Thaçi's defense announced that Clark has received authorization from the United States Government to testify in the defense of Thaçi, who, along with three former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) superiors, is being tried in the Dutch city for war crimes.

Clark led the NATO air campaign against Serbian military targets in 1999.

The 11-week NATO bombing campaign, launched to stop Serbian forces' violence against Albanians in Kosovo, was halted in June 1999, one day after the signing of the Kumanovo Agreement.

Clark is seen as a hero in Kosovo for his role in the liberation of the country, and for this he was honored in Pristina with a decoration in 2024. There are even streets in Kosovo named in his honor.

The trial of Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selim, who deny charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity before and during the 1998–1999 war, is nearing its conclusion.

Clark will be the last to testify on Thaçi's behalf, whose defense began calling witnesses in September.

It is not clear when exactly Clark will take the defense witness stand, but, according to the defense, he has announced that he cannot begin testifying before November 18 or 19.

Thaçi's defense had previously predicted that it would present witnesses by November 14, however the court has allowed more time.

The defense has also asked the court to reserve Friday, November 21, for an additional hearing, in case this is necessary to conclude Clark's testimony.

So far, former US Assistant Secretary of State James Rubin, legal advisor to the Kosovo delegation during the 1999 Rambouillet negotiations, Paul Williams, and former British diplomat John Stewart Duncan have testified in Thaçi's defense.

They all said in their testimonies that Thaçi had no authority over the KLA.

The Kosovo Special Court is based in The Hague, Netherlands, and is composed of international judges and lawyers, having been established by the Kosovo Assembly in 2015, to try cases against former KLA members under Kosovo law.

She expects the trial against the former KLA leaders to be concluded by the end of December.

Thaçi was the political leader of the KLA before and during the 1998–1999 war, Veseli was the head of the intelligence service, Krasniqi was the spokesman, and Selimi was a member of the general staff.

The indictment against them includes charges of illegal detention, torture, murder, crimes against humanity, enforced disappearance and persecution of hundreds of civilians and persons who did not participate in the fighting.

These crimes allegedly occurred between March 1998 and September 1999 in various locations in Kosovo, but also in northern Albania.

According to the Specialist Chambers, Thaçi, Veseli, Krasniqi and Selimi bear personal criminal responsibility for these crimes, but they all deny guilt.

Defense lawyers have stated that the KLA would not have gained the support of the international community if there had been a criminal plan, as prosecutors claim.

According to them, the indictment is based on a selective misinterpretation of events./ REL