John Stewart Duncan testifying in court docket, September 22, 2025. Picture: Kosovo Specialist Chambers/Livestream
The third witness for Kosovo’s former President, Hashim Thaci, in his warfare crimes and crimes in opposition to humanity trial on the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, John Stewart Duncan, mentioned the Kosovo Liberation Military, KLA, didn’t have a hierarchal construction, and the final commander, Agim Ceku, and the operational zone commanders had efficient management.
“The ability within the [KLA] navy wing, these on the bottom, was cut up between Agim Ceku and the zone commanders,” Stewart Duncan, former political advisor to the previous NATO Supreme Commander for Europe, Basic Wesley Clark, instructed the court docket on Tuesday, explaining that Thaci and his co-defendant, former parliament speaker Jakup Krasniqi, have been a part of the KLA political wing.
“Mr Krasniqi and Mr Thaci by no means went into navy issues, they solely talked about political issues. Equally, Ceku solely talked about navy issues,” he famous, explaining how he had distinguished between the navy and political representatives.
He described the KLA as having round 25,000 to 30,000 troopers who had joined from completely different backgrounds, not essentially a navy one. He mentioned it was “not a hierarchical organisation the place folks do what they’re instructed [but] an organisation which had extra complicated energy buildings”.
On Monday, the identical witness had defined that NATO invited the excessive commanders of the KLA to succeed in a demilitarization settlement with Basic Clark, including that, “that was the problem we have been going through there, as a result of they didn’t have a hierarchical construction. They have been organised in a different way.
“We couldn’t simply go and discuss to Thaci or Ceku and suppose that might remedy the issue. Issues didn’t work that means. We needed to discuss to individuals who had authority, they usually have been the commanders of the zones,” the witness mentioned throughout the questioning.
He added that “the actual energy within the KLA construction was held by the KLA regional commanders and this was confirmed to us once we met Basic Agim Ceku initially of the [demilitarization] settlement negotiations”.
On Tuesday, he defined that though Thaci signed the demilitarization settlement in June 1999, that didn’t imply he had “command and management” over the KLA.
“Thaci had command however not management; he might subject directions,” however not essentially guarantee their implementation, the witness defined. He added that the settlement was a “understandable” one, that means that “all of the actors within the course of had an curiosity [in it], not as a result of he [Thaci] had command and management, however as a result of all of them had an curiosity”.
Thaci was indicted in October 2020 and resigned as Kosovo President in November 2020 to face the costs and was despatched to The Hague with Krasniqi, and former parliament speaker Kadri Veseli, and former MP Rexhep Selimi. They’ve been in detention ever since.
The Kosovo Specialist Chambers are a part of Kosovo’s justice system however are based mostly in The Hague with a world workers to make sure truthful proceedings after witness intimidation issues in earlier KLA-related circumstances. Many ethnic Albanians and KLA supporters insist that the proceedings have been unfair to the defendants.
Many prosecution witnesses have testified behind closed doorways to guard their identities as a consequence of fears of reprisals, however this has led to allegations of an absence of transparency. The court docket has instructed BIRN that Thaci will name 11 witnesses, whereas former speaker Krasniqi will name two. The judging panel has set November 14 as an estimated time limit for the defence case. After closing statements, the panel has 90 days to contemplate its verdict, suggesting that it might be delivered in spring 2026.
