Skopje, 27 September 2026, dtt-net.com – Thousands of ethnic Albanians of North Macedonia took the streets of North Macedonia’s capital town of Skopje today, as protests of Albanians against recent guilty verdict and sentencing of former Kosovo President and three of his associates, all former leader of KLA guerrilla leaders, on charges of war crimes during the 1998-1999 war for liberation and independence from Serbia, are spreading beyond Kosovo borders.
“These rallies are aimed at sending a message to this court, in particular to the prosecution, about a scandalous and entirely political decision,” the leader of biggest Albanian party in North Macedonia and former leader of Albanian guerilla in the country which entered into 7-month armed conflict in 2021 against North Macedonia forces for more rights in the country, said in his speech.
The rally of today in Skopje in support of Hashim Thaçi and his associates, Jakup Krasniqi, Kadri Veseli and Rexhep Selimi, was called by country’s Albanian war veterans, then led by Ali Ahmeti.
Ahmeti himself was member of Kosovo’s KLA until late 1998 but has not personally participated in the 1998-1999 war in Kosovo.
Hundreds of North Macedonia Albanians did.
The conflict of Ahmeti’s NLA guerilla and North Macedonia state forces ended with a EU/NATO-brokered agreement in Ohrid town, and Albanians of the country got changes in the constitution and laws for more rights for language use, education rights and more employment in the public sector, but 25 years later problems they are facing with implementation by Macedonians who represent more than 60 percent of country’s population.
As problems of implementation of Ohrid Agreement erupted expecially this year, Albanian students at the forefront of calls for full respect of Ohrid Agreement, Constitution and law changes, especially in Albanian language use and respect, and are expected to take streets again, after two massive ones in April and May this year.
Albanians in the country represent around 25 percent of country’s population.
At the same time, daily protests in Kosovo in support of the four sentenced to total 81 years, of which 25 for Thaçi, continued today in capital Prishtina, while Kosovo Albanian Diaspora has also started to organize protests in European capitals, including announcing one in Brussels in front of EU HQ for upcoming weekend.
Ten days ago, Hashim Thaçi and three other former officials and former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi were sentenced on war crimes charges to total 91 years of imprisonment, of which Thaçi and Krasniqi to 25 years each, Krasniqi to 18 and Selimi to 13 on charges of war crimes during the 1998-1999 war of KLA for liberation and independence from Serbia.
PDK, founded and led by Thaçi and Kadri Veseli until 2020, when they voluntarily handed over themselves to the court for trial, last week sent proposals to the parliament for the law changes, hoping to obtain acquittal of the four in Prishtina court if the appeal chamber in the Hague, made of European and American prosecutors and judges, would order a retrial after an appeal is made by the defence.
According to the PDK party, changes forwarded to the parliament would limit the mandate of the court and retrial – if decided by appeal court – while further procedures would be transferred to local courts in Kosovo.
For cases currently in process, the draft-law foresees that the proceedings will continue in the Appeals Court according to the existing structure of the Specialist Chambers and in the event that the Appeals Court orders a retrial, according to Hamza explanations, it would be conducted under the new jurisdiction [if changed by Kosovo parliament], and when the conditions are met, the case would be transferred to Kosovo territory.
The Prime Minister Albin Kurti has still not made a clear public response to the law changes wanted by the PDK, as both sides today held talks also on how end stalemate on completing constitution of parliament after June early elections and electing a new President of the country.
The PDK has offered publicly support for electing new President, if Kurti would agree to support the EU-written law on special war crimes court.
A session of contested parliament, which Kurti and his LVV consider constituted although 30-day deadline ruled by the Constitutional Court, is called for Monday (September 28).
