The Humanitarian Law Center in Kosovo said that since October 1999, 39 people were convicted of war crimes.
This figure was announced during the publication of a statement of war crimes trials in Kosovo during 1999-2018, where 48 war crimes trials were conducted in the country with a total of 111 accused persons.Of these, 25 cases are against Serbs, 19 against Albanians, 3 cases against Montenegrins, and one against Roma, one agains Ashkali and one against Egyptian communities.
"In 19 cases against Albanians we have 61 accused, of whom 23 are released, 34 are convicted, two are on the run, and 2 are currently in process. Of the other 25 cases against Serbs, we have 44 accused, 13 released persons, 4 convicts and 24 on the run. We have three cases against Montenegrin members, where five Montenegrins are indicted, two are released, one has been convicted and two have fled," said Amer Alija of the Humanitarian Law Center Kosovo.
The issue of war crimes trials in Kosovo continues to be one of the country's biggest challenges.
Parliament of Kosovo approved on Thursday the draft law on war crimes trial in absentia, which according to the MPs will enable the judiciary to prosecute and punish perpetrators of these crimes even without their presence.
More than ten thousand were killed during the Kosovo War that ended with the intervention of NATO peacekeeping troops.
Meanwhile, nothing is known about the fate of over 1,600 missing persons.