Salih Mustafa

Salih Mustafa, (born 1 January 1972) is a former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) commander and convicted war criminal.

Not to be confused with Muhammad Salih Mustafa.

Salih Mustafa
Born(1972-01-01)1 January 1972
Prishtina, SFR Yugoslavia
Allegiance Kosovo Liberation Army
RankCommander
Battles/warsKosovo War
Criminal chargeWar crimes of arbitrary detention, cruel treatment, torture, and murder
Penalty26 years imprisonment

Early life and education

Mustafa was born on 1 January 1972 in the city of Pristina in Kosovo, then part of Yugoslavia. He completed studies in economics and following the end of the Kosovo War, he served as an adviser in the Kosovar Ministry of Defence.[1]

Kosovo War

During the Kosovo War, Mustafa served with the KLA as a commander of a guerilla unit operating in the Llap region of Kosovo.[2] In 2021, Mustafa was charged for war crimes for acts committed against Kosovo Albanian civilians detained in the detention compound in Zllash in April 1999.[3][4]

Trial and conviction

He was indicted for war crimes by the Kosovo Specialist Chambers. The indictment charges Mustafa with "arbitrary detention… cruel treatment … torture … and murder" of civilians in 1999, in particular ordering prisoners to be tortured at an internment camp in Zllash/Zlas. Mustafa's trial began on 15 September 2021 and is the first heard by the Kosovo Specialist Chambers. Prosecutors said that witnesses would testify at the trial that Mustafa tortured them or ordered their torture.[5][6]

In December 2022 he was convicted of the war crimes of arbitrary detention, torture, and murder, but not convicted of cruel treatment. He was sentenced to 26 years in prison.[7]

The sentence was criticized by some Kosovo Albanians.[8]

References
  1. "Specialist Prosecutor vs. Salih Mustafa" (PDF). Kosovo Specialist Chamber & Specialist Prosecutor's Office. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
  2. Krieger, Heike; Mignot-Mahdavi, Rebecca; Geiß, Robin; D. Gill, Terry (2022). Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law, Volume 23 (2020). Berlin, Germany: Springer. p. 210. ISBN 9789462654914.
  3. "Humanitarian Law Center Kosovo". Humanitarian Law Center Kosovo.
  4. "Specialist Prosecutor vs Salih Mustafa - Prosecutor Opening Statement" (PDF). Kosovo Specialist Chamber & Specialist Prosecutor's Office. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
  5. Bami, Xhorxhina (28 June 2021). "Kosovo War Crimes Court's First Trial Will Set a Precedent". Balkan Insight. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
  6. Bami, Xhorxhina (15 September 2021). "First Trial of Kosovo Ex-Guerrilla Opens at Hague War Crimes Court". Balkan Insight. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
  7. "Salih Mustafa found guilty of war crimes and sentenced to 26 years of imprisonment". Kosovo Specialist Chambers & Specialist Prosecutor's Office. 16 December 2022. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  8. "Conviction of Kosovo's 'Commander Cali' Sparks Anger at Home". Balkan Insight. 16 December 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
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