The name of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) echoed in the main squares of Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, on Saturday, just three days before the Special Court in The Hague is expected to decide the fate of four former KLA leaders, who are accused by the Kosovo Specialist Chambers of war crimes during during the war in Kosovo.

Specifically, the four are charged with 10 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity (including murder, torture, persecution and enforced disappearances) committed between 1998 and 1999.

Thousands of citizens from across Kosovo, Albania and North Macedonia responded to the call of the initiative “Liria ka Emër” (“Freedom Has a Name”) and joined what organizers called the “March for Freedom” (Marshi për Liri).

“In the name of the people, Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi are declared innocent,” read a large banner placed at the site of the protest, alongside many flags bearing the official emblem of the KLA.

“In the name of the people, Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi, I declare you innocent. This is how we expect you to be declared on September 16 as well. Freedom for all four of you. Kosovo is waiting for you, liberators,” said Bedri Hamza, the leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), in his address to the protesters.

Furthermore, Hamza said that the decision, which will be read in The Hague on Wednesday, September 16, will be felt by families, mothers, children, former soldiers and veterans. He added that they would not accept an unjust decision.

“A just decision strengthens justice, while an unjust one undermines it. An unjust decision is a punishment for Kosovo, and we do not accept injustice. These are not words spoken in anger; they are words of responsibility, because we know what it means to live with injustice,” Hamza added in front of the crowd.

In addition to citizens, members of parliament from across the political spectrum, as well as politicians from Albania and North Macedonia, participated in the event.

“These people fought against those who killed us and raped us; they fought against those who, in December 1998, killed their own children in order to blame the Albanians; they fought against those who organized ‘safaris’ in Sarajevo. We should thank them for their service, not persecute them. They have been persecuted for a very long time,” said Ardian Gjini of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK).

The Kosovo Specialist Chambers have scheduled the public pronouncement of the trial judgment in the case against Thaçi, Veseli, Krasniqi and Selimi for September 16, 2026, at 10:00 CET in The Hague.