Kosovo Albanian on UN war crimes tribunal list arrested

A Kosovo Albanian sought by the United Nations war crimes tribunal in The Hague on charges of torturing and murdering Serb and Albanian civilians has been arrested in Slovenia four days after he left Kosovo on a regular airlines flight.

Fatmir Limaj, 32, one of four Albanians indicted on charges of crimes against humanity and violations of the laws or customs of war, was arrested yesterday in Kransjka Gora, Slovenia, the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) said today. The other three were transferred from Kosovo to The Hague yesterday.

ICTY prosecutor Carla Del Ponte yesterday criticized as “outrageous” the ease with which Mr. Limaj was allowed to leave Kosovo on a regular flight even though international security forces had been in possession of the sealed indictment and arrest warrant for two-and-a-half weeks.

The other three suspects, Haradin Bala, 45, Isak Musliu, 32, and Agim Murtezi, 46, are scheduled to make their initial appearance before the Tribunal tomorrow.

Mr. Limaj, a commander in the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) responsible for the operation of the Lapusnik/Llapushnik prison camp, was charged with holding at least 35 Serb and Albanian civilians “under conditions that were brutal and inhumane, and routinely subjected them to physical and psychological abuse, including torture and beatings.”

Mr. Bala, Mr. Musliu and Mr. Murtezi, all KLA members and guards at the camp, enforced inhumane conditions, including inadequate food and medical care, and participated in or aided and abetted the torture and beatings of detainees, according to the Tribunal.