1st Kosovar Albanian arrested on war crimes charges

PRISTINA, Kosovo — A special international court said Thursday that a former commander of the separatist fighters in Kosovo’s 1998-1999 war has been arrested on charges including torture of detainees and the murder of one prisoner held at a compound in Kosovo during the conflict. The Kosovo Specialist Chambers, based in The Hague, said former Kosovo Liberation Army commander Salih Mustafa was arrested based on a “warrant, transfer order and confirmed indictment issued by a pre-trial judge.” He is the first ethnic Albanian arrested and sent to the court, which is investigating war crimes and crimes against humanity investigation stemming from Kosovo’s conflict with Serbia. In one incident alleged in the indictment, Mustafa interrogated a detainee “about his knowledge of the identities of thieves and spies, and beat him with a baseball bat all over his body, causing him severe mental harm and severe physical injuries.” The court said Mustafa was transferred to its detention facilities in The Hague on Thursday and will appear before a pre-trial judge “without undue delay.” The Kosovo Liberation Army was made up of ethnic Albanian rebels who wanted Kosovo’s independence from Serbia. The Kosovo Specialist Chambers and an attached Special Prosecutor’s Office, or SPO, was established five years ago to look into allegations that KLA members committed war crimes and crimes against humanity. The European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo, or EULEX, which is in charge of the court, said it had “provided operational and logistic support to the SPO in line with its mandate and in accordance with the Kosovo legislation.” Hysni Gucati of the war veterans’ association said Mustafa’s family reported he was arrested early Thursday and taken to The Hague.