The Hague’s special court for punishing war crimes during the Kosovo war has sentenced former KCU commander Salih Mustafa to 26 years in prison for murder and torture. The court “sentences you to 26 years in prison,” Judge Mappie Veldt-Foglia said on Friday. The 50-year-old defendant accepted the verdict largely unfazed.
Arbitrary detention, torture, murder
It was the first time that the special court had delivered a verdict on war crimes in Kosovo. Mustafa was convicted of three war crimes related to at least six prisoners during the 1998-99 Kosovo war: arbitrary detention, torture and murder. He allegedly abused prisoners accused of collaborating with the Serbs in a makeshift prison run by the Albanian “Kosovo Liberation Army” (UCK).
Prisoners were beaten with baseball bats and iron bars, electrocuted, burned and deprived of food and water. According to the court, Mustafa was personally involved in the abuse of two prisoners. One of the victims died.
“Marco” after six years of preparation
The former KLA commander was the first to be charged before the special court in The Hague. Prosecutor Jack Smith described the trial as a “landmark” for the court – after six years of preparation. 29 witnesses were heard during the trial.
The 50-year-old defendant has denied the allegations. Both sides now have 30 days to appeal.
Former president of Kosobo also accused
The Kosovo Tribunal was created in 2015 to investigate possible war crimes in the 1998-99 conflict between Kosovo and Serbia. The court operates under Kosovar law. However, it is based in the Netherlands and funded by the EU to protect witnesses from intimidation. Mustafa compared him to the “Gestapo” when his trial began last year.
A trial for murder, kidnapping, stalking and torture will also be held against former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci, who was also a former UCK commander. 13,000 people were killed in the Kosovo conflict that led to the separation of the province from Serbia.