Live update

This morning, the SPO called its 54th witness. This is a protected witness with the pseudonym W04739, whose testimony will be entirely in closed session, as ordered by the panel for the protection of the witness.

The trial in the Thaçi et al. case has adjourned for the day and the week. This trial will resume on Tuesday, 2 April, at 09:00.

Due to a technical issue, the live stream of today’s hearing in the Thaci et al case froze around 13:30 and lasted for a couple of minutes. We apologize for any inconvenience this might have caused for the viewers of our online stream.

The full transcript of this hearing, along with the video file, will be accessible on our YouTube channel and website as soon as possible.

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

On 27 March 2024, Judge Guillou issued an order with concrete time lines for the remaining pre-trial proceedings in the case against Sabit Januzi, Ismet Bahtijari and Haxhi Shala.

As per the funding situation of their teams, the Defence is ordered to complete and submit the required forms and documentations by 12 April 2024 if they intend to request legal aid from the KSC. The Judge ordered the Defence teams to file written submissions if there are any obstacles in meeting the deadline for submitting the necessary forms, and he also requested the Registry to process these applications on an urgent basis.

Among other deadlines, the Judge also ordered that the Defence must file its pre-trial brief by 7 June and set 21 June 2024 as the date for transmitting the case file to the Trial Panel.

The decision with more details is available here.

A public redacted version of the Registrar’s submission regarding the implementation of the Reparation Order in the case of Salih Mustafa (filed confidentially on 24 January this year) is now available in our Public Court Records. This submission follows the assignment of a Single Judge on 17 January (see our announcement on this here) to oversee the implementation by the Registrar of the Reparation Order and to receive reports from the Registrar on any actions taken before the Crime Victim Compensation Program in Kosovo.

The Registrar noted that the applicable deadline to submit applications to the Crime Victim Compensation Program on behalf of the victims in this case is within three years from the receipt of the final judgment, as this deadline is stipulated by the amended applicable law in Kosovo. This will be done, in cooperation with Victims’ Counsel, once all relevant information is received and all requirements are met, she said, and specified that, according to the same law, these applications can only be submitted after a determination on Mustafa’s inability to compensate the eight victims himself, fully or in part. If such a determination is requested by the Single Judge, the Registrar stated she can conduct an assessment of Mustafa’s indigence using the system established in the KSC Legal Aid Regulations.

Based on the information provided, the Registrar seeks the Single Judge’s decision on this matter.

Witness Shaun Byrnes continued his testimony this morning. The Panel is currently putting questions to the witness.

Due to technical difficulties, there were problems with both previewing and downloading filings from the KSC Public Court Records (PCR) this morning. The problem has been resolved and the PCR is functioning correctly.

Please be informed that the hearing tomorrow (28 March) in the trial of Thaçi et al. will begin at 10:00. 

Another KSC weekly press briefing will take place on Thursday, 28 March, 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.