Live update

Following the completion of witness Dietrich Jensch's testimony, the Prosecution in the Thaçi et al. case called its 64th witness this afternoon. The new witness is Johan Rudolph Fritsch who, as per the SPO's court summary, served as the KFOR Press officer in the Prizren area during the relevant period.

In accordance with the Panel's order from 21 February, the SPO announced today, 21 May, that it will no longer rely upon the evidence of ten witnesses. Additionally, the SPO will present the statements of 13 witnesses in written form instead of live testimony in court. Further information can be found in the notice.

The new witness, called by the Prosecution this morning, is Dietrich Jensch. As per the summary presented by the SPO in court, this witness served as a German KFOR officer in the Prizren area during the relevant period. He is the 63rd witness brought forward by the SPO in court.

Here is the transcript of today's KSC Weekly Press Briefing.

Another KSC weekly press briefing will take place on Thursday, 16 May, at 14:30. During this briefing, the KSC Spokespersons will provide a short update on the latest developments in the judicial proceedings before the KSC, as well as on other public activities of the Court. Journalists will have the opportunity to ask questions. Pre-registration is required to attend each briefing. To pre-register, please send an email with name and affiliation to [email protected]. Deadline for pre-registration is every Thursday at 12:00. The Zoom details will be shared following pre-registration. Recordings of the update provided during the Weekly Press Briefings will be made available on the KSC YouTube Channel.

Isni Kilaj was released in Kosovo today, 15 May, under strict conditions, pursuant to the decision of a Single Judge of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC), taken on 3 May 2024. This decision was subsequently upheld by a KSC Court of Appeals Panel on 13 May 2024. More details in the KSC Press Release.

Here is the transcript of today's KSC Weekly Press Briefing.

Following the completion of the testimony of the SPO’s 62nd witness, the trial in the Thaçi et al. case has adjourned for today and for the week.

As agreed by the parties and based on the Panel's finding that this evidence meets the requirements under Rule 153 of the KSC Rules, the testimony of the next SPO witness, W02486, will be admitted into evidence in accordance with this Rule. As a result, since this witness will not be present for oral testimony and will not be cross-examined by the Defence, the scheduled video-link testimony for this witness on Friday, 10 May is cancelled, and there will be no hearing on that day.

This trial will resume on 21 May, at 09:00.

Another KSC weekly press briefing will take place on Wednesday, 8 May, at 14:30. During this briefing, the KSC Spokespersons will provide a short update on the latest developments in the judicial proceedings before the KSC, as well as on other public activities of the Court. Journalists will have the opportunity to ask questions. Pre-registration is required to attend each briefing. To pre-register, please send an email with name and affiliation to [email protected](link sends e-mail). Deadline for pre-registration is every Thursday at 12:00. The Zoom details will be shared following pre-registration. Recordings of the update provided during the Weekly Press Briefings will be made available on the KSC YouTube Channel.

The new witness, called by the Prosecution this morning, is a protected witness with the pseudonym W03878, who is giving testimony through a video-link. According to the summary read by the SPO in court, this witness was arrested and detained by KLA soldiers in early 1999.