War crimes in Kosovo: arrest of a former KLA commander

Salih Mustapha will be the first accused of the Specialized Chamber for Kosovo.

This court, approved by the Parliament of Kosovo in 2015, after strong international pressure, had so far never arrested anyone.

(illustrative image) REUTERS / Ognen Teofilovski

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2 min

The Specialized Chamber for Kosovo, a both Kosovar and international tribunal responsible for trying the war crimes committed by the Kosovo Albanians, had a suspect arrested for the first time since its creation.

The man, a former guerrilla leader who became an employee of the defense ministry, is accused of cruel treatment and violence against prisoners.

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With our correspondent in Belgrade,

Former commander of the UCK, the Albanian guerrilla against Serbia during the 1999 war, Salih Mustapha was arrested on Thursday, September 24 in Kosovo by agents of the special prosecutor's office.

He was immediately transferred to The Hague, where he was imprisoned pending trial.

Under an indictment kept secret until arrest, Mustapha is accused of having run an underground UCK prison in 1999, where 6 prisoners were allegedly ill-treated, and one was allegedly killed.

Salih Mustapha is the first ex-KLA commander to be arrested by order of the special prosecutor.

And he will be the first accused of the Specialized Chamber for Kosovo.

This court, approved by the Parliament of Kosovo in 2015, after strong international pressure, had so far never arrested anyone.

To the point that many questioned its effectiveness.

But in June this year, the special prosecutor issued a conditional indictment against Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci.

Mustapha's arrest suggests that the court will speed up its work in the future.

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• International justice

• Kosovo

• Serbia

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