Kosovo Working Group on Thaci Appeal Keeps Deals Secret

The Kosovo government’s working group preparing a state strategy for an appeal against the first-instance verdict on former KLA leaders held its second meeting on Saturday, November 7, at the government building in Pristina. Members agreed that the content of their agreements will stay out of public view. Vljora Citaku of the PDK, a member of the group, spoke about it after the meeting.

What was said after the meeting

Citaku said the group’s work would not be followed through public statements:

“We agreed on the confidentiality of this group’s work. Work should speak, not statements. Certain agreements have been reached, but they are not for the public.”

That confirms some agreements were reached, but she did not say which. No final strategy or concrete plan of action has been presented publicly so far.

Who sits on the group

The group is chaired by Kosovo’s first deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Glauk Konjufca. It includes representatives of institutions and parliamentary parties. Attending the meeting were Citaku, Jehona Ljusaku-Sadriu (Democratic League of Kosovo), Beke Berisa (Alliance for the Future of Kosovo) and Adnan Rustemi (Self-Determination).

How did the group arrive at confidentiality?

The Kosovo government set up the group by a decision of October 14, to provide institutional, legal and diplomatic support for an appeal against the first-instance verdict against Hashim Thaci, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasnici and Redzep Seljimi. Its constitutive meeting took place on October 28.

On November 5 the group adopted its rules of work and formed a smaller working group, tasked with merging the institutions’ proposals into one joint document. Konjufca also announced Saturday’s meeting at that point, where the documents prepared by the institutions were to be reviewed. He asked the media for understanding, explaining that the work of this mechanism would be confidential. Citaku’s statement on Saturday is therefore not a change of approach, but confirmation of what Konjufca announced two days earlier.

The verdict and the deadline that is running

The Specialist Chambers in The Hague handed down the verdict on September 16: Thaci and Krasnici were sentenced to 25 years in prison each, Veseli to 18 years and Seljimi to 13. According to the summary of the judgment, all four are criminally responsible for the arbitrary arrest and detention of 385 people, the cruel treatment of 49, the torture of 303 and the murder of 96.

The deadline the Specialist Chambers gave the defense and the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office to announce an appeal expires on November 27, 2026. That leaves less than three weeks, and according to Citaku, the public will not be informed about the content of the agreements the group has reached so far.