Dutch police have increased security measures outside the Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague, just hours before the highly anticipated first-instance verdict involving four former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) leaders.
Police officers were stationed outside the court building and instructed Albanian citizens gathered in the area to leave. One officer reportedly said he had been ordered by his commander not to allow anyone to remain directly in front of the building for more than two minutes.
“If you stay here for two minutes, that is fine, but otherwise you have to move along. You are not allowed to stay here. That is the reason. You cannot remain in front of the Tribunal,” the officer told those present, directing them to move away from the entrance.
The officer also pointed people toward the nearby Malieveld area, where a demonstration is expected to take place.
The verdict hearing is scheduled to begin tomorrow at 10:00 a.m., when the trial panel is expected to deliver the first-instance judgment for former KLA leaders Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi.
