The Special Court in The Hague decided that Hashim Thaçi should continue to remain in detention, justifying this move by claiming that the legal grounds for his stay in detention centers continue to be valid even after the latest review.
According to the court, the risks envisaged in Article 41 – the risk of flight, the possibility of obstruction of proceedings and the risk of committing new criminal offences – still exist and cannot be mitigated by measures lighter than detention. The Specialist Prosecutor’s Office insisted that no release condition reliably avoids these risks.
“The SPO argues that Mr. Thaçi’s continued detention remains proportionate, given the limited time that has passed, the potentially lengthy sentence he faces, and the progress of the current proceedings,” its announcement said. The defense, on the other hand, requested a reassessment, highlighting changes in circumstances following the conclusion of the evidence phase in the main case in 2020.
The judge ultimately emphasized that there were not sufficient changes presented that would justify the release of the former president at this stage. Meanwhile, the Court also set new procedural deadlines according to which Thaçi, in general, can react no later than January 27, 2026.
The former president of Kosovo faces two separate trials in The Hague, one for war crimes, which has been ongoing since 2020, and another for obstruction of justice.
