After the ruling delivered in The Hague for the former KLA leaders, Sevdije Krasniqi reacted with an emotionally charged account in which she spoke about the family’s expectations, the disappointment after the verdict was announced, and the hope that has now shifted to the appeal. In her statements, she also questions the process itself and the way it was conducted against her husband, Jakup Krasniqi.
The family says it expected an acquittal
Sevdije Krasniqi says that until the very end, the family had believed the accused would be declared not guilty. According to her, the ruling was awaited at home, and the moment it was announced was shocking for the family.
In her reaction, she links the sentence to the figure of the former KLA leaders and insists that this decision, in her view, should not affect life in Kosovo or the way the KLA war is seen.
Strong accusations against the Special Court
In her statements, Sevdije Krasniqi calls for the release of those convicted and says the family will await the appeal process. She expresses the belief that the next phase should be based on facts.
She also levels direct accusations against the Special Court and the process that led to this ruling, using harsh political language and calling for all legal means to be used against the ruling and the court itself.
Personal account of how she met Jakup Krasniqi
In her interview, Sevdije Krasniqi also reflects on her personal history with her husband. She says that meeting him is tied to the period when he was in prison and that, according to her, after his release they began their life together.
One of the most personal details of her account concerns a promise she made to him: that, unlike the time when she had not visited him in prison, in The Hague she would go to see him every month.
His absence from the family and interrupted plans
Sevdije Krasniqi says that one of the heaviest burdens for the family has been Jakup Krasniqi’s absence during important family moments. According to her, happy occasions at home have also been experienced with a sense of emptiness because of his absence.
She adds that the family had been awaiting his return and that they had made plans for life after The Hague, including the idea of living together in a house in the village.
Doubts about the process and the final message
According to Sevdije Krasniqi’s account, Jakup Krasniqi himself had earlier expressed doubts about the process, referring to the way he was arrested and the way the case has been handled, in her view.
At the end of her reaction, she says the family’s hope remains with the appeal, while the message she conveys to her husband is to stay strong during this difficult period.
Sevdije Krasniqi’s account shifts attention from the courtroom to the human and family consequences of the ruling, while the legal battle, according to the family, remains open at the appeal level.
Her statements reflect not only the emotional blow after the sentence, but also the refusal to accept the case’s final version before all legal stages have been exhausted.