The Hague Prosecution Requests Rejection of Evidence of Serbian Massacres in Kosovo
Express newspaper
03/10/2025 10:44
The Hague Specialized Prosecutor’s Office has refused to accept some material evidence of Jakup Krasniqi’s defense which relate to the crimes of Serbian forces in Kosovo. Moreover, the rejection of the documents and reports presented has been done with a disregard and harsh terminology towards these events, which include massacres against the Albanian civilian population during the war.
For example, the Special Prosecution Office has called the massacres committed by Serbs against Albanians in Rahovec “insignificant.”
“Count 11 should be dismissed for lack of relevance. The Trial Panel has made it clear that the crimes or violence committed by Serbian forces are generally insignificant. Count 11 is a BBC documentary, entirely about Serbian crimes committed against Kosovo Albanians in the Rahovec/Orahovac area in 1998. The video contains graphic images of the victims of these crimes and no information that could be relevant to any aspect of the case, with the exception of a short section, to which the SPO does not object,” the Prosecution said.
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The same was done in a case of the murder of an Albanian in March 1999.
“Item 16 is a report on the murder of a Kosovo Albanian by suspected Serbian perpetrators in March 1999. Its admission should be refused as it repeats already adjudicated facts and, otherwise, concerns only Serb crimes. Contrary to the Defense’s submission, the document does not contain any information on the KLA’s control over the perpetrators of the crimes after the conflict,” the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office further argues, Demokracia.com reports.
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“Unimportant” for the prosecution are also other historical facts of the expulsion of Albanian civilians from their homes, who could not then return.
“The admission of Count 19, [REDACTED], must be rejected for lack of relevance. The fact that Kosovo Albanian civilians could not return to their homes, in or around Rahovec/Orahovc, in July 1999, is not relevant to any charge or material fact, nor has the Defence argued that it is. Contrary to the Defence’s submission, the information in the document has no apparent connection to KLA policy or to any crime for which an indictment has been filed,” the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office further stated.
DOCUMENT:
The Specialized Prosecutor’s Office had acted differently with the materials coming from Serbia. This evidence proposed by the Prosecution they included media articles, video interviews, official reports, and even entire files produced by Serbian state structures.
In the 50-page request of the ZPS sent to the Court, which VOX Kosova reported on, it is revealed that the same sources are the Serbian MUP, the State Security Service known as BIA, the so-called Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia, the State Archives of the Serbian Army and Police, as well as the Yugoslav Military Courts which were at that time controlled by the genocidal regime of Milosevic.
Since the start of the defense case, four witnesses for Hashim Thaçi have testified: James Rubin, Paul Williams, John Duncan and most recently Jock Covey. Witnesses called by Jakup Krasniqi are also expected to appear in the Special. /Demokracia