Hashim Thaci released from custody to visit his ailing father

In Pristina, Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, the ex-President, was briefly allowed to receive a release from a European Union-backed court on Thursday to visit his father, who is ill. Thaci was accompanied by family members during the visit and spent approximately three hours at the public hospital in Kosovo’s capital. The release drew significant attention, evidenced by the gathering of supporters outside the hospital, although police officers from the European Union Rule of Law Mission, known as EULEX, maintained order and prevented supporters from approaching Thaci. Thaci and other senior figures from the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) have been detained at the court in The Hague, Netherlands, since November 2020, facing serious war crime charges including murder, torture, and persecution relevant to their actions during and following the Kosovo war from 1998 to 1999. This specific court was established in response to a Council of Europe report released in 2011, which detailed allegations of KLA fighters engaging in organ trafficking from prisoners and killing both Serbs and fellow ethnic Albanians. It's important to note that allegations concerning organ harvesting were not included in the court's formal indictments, even though the narrative of such serious accusations remains part of the larger picture surrounding the conflict. Approximately 11,400 deaths during the war, predominantly ethnic Albanians, mark a significant and tragic moment in Kosovo’s history. The conflict was ultimately concluded by a NATO air campaign lasting 78 days, which compelled withdrawal of Serbian troops. Despite Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia in 2008, recognition of this status remains a contentious issue, with Serbia and its allies, notably Russia and China, continuing to oppose it.