Fatmir Limaj
{{Short description|Kosovar politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Fatmir Limaj
| image =
| imagesize = 200px
| office = Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo
| term_start = 9 September 2017
| term_end = 26 December 2019
| primeminister = Ramush Haradinaj
| office1 = Leader of NISMA
| term_start1 = 28 February 2014
| term_end1 =
| predecessor1 = New Office
| successor1 =
| office2 = Minister of Transport and Telecommunication in the Government of Kosovo
| term_start2 = 9 January 2008
| term_end2 = 18 October 2010
| party = Democratic Party (1999–2014)
NISMA (2014–present)
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1971|02|04|df=y}}
| birth_place = Banje, Malishevë, Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija, SFR Yugoslavia
{{small|(now Kosovo)}}
| signature = Fatmir Limaj (nënshkrim).svg|
| nickname = Çeliku (nom de guerre)
| battles = Battle of Llapushnik
| allegiance = File:UCK KLA.svg Kosovo Liberation Army
}}
Fatmir Limaj (born 4 February 1971), is a Kosovo-Albanian politician. He is the leader of Nisma Socialdemokrate. Limaj served as Minister of Transport and Telecommunication in the government of the Republic of Kosovo. He was known as "Çeliku" during the Yugoslav wars.
Biography
Limaj was born in the village of Banje, in the municipality of Suva Reka, Kosovo, (then Yugoslavia).{{cite web |title=Limaj et al. Case Information Sheet |url=https://www.icty.org/x/cases/limaj/cis/en/cis_limaj_al_en.pdf |website=ICTY.org |publisher=United Nations}} His family is alleged to descend from the Thaçi tribe (fis), a claim that was made by Hashim Thaçi, a member of the tribe and the former Prime Minister of Kosovo, during an interview on the Albanian show "Oxygen".{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMAjsHZeLbU |title=Hashim Thaçi Me emrin Ramush, Behgjet e Hashim vështirë na pranojnë në BE |date=2019-08-12 |last=Oxygen |access-date=2024-07-27 |via=YouTube}} During the 1999 Kosovo War, Limaj was a commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), in the Llapushnik area. He took part in the Battle of Llapusnik as a commander. His alias was Çeliku.
After the war he was one of the founders of what is now Kosovo's largest political party, the Democratic Party of Kosovo.{{cite book |editor1-last=Burnett |editor1-first=M. Troy |title=Nationalism Today: Extreme Political Movements around the World [2 volumes] |date=2020 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=9781440850004 |page=639 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OprzDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA639}} After his indictment, which he was freed from in 2007 (see below), he returned to politics. From 2007 to 2010, he served as the Minister of Transport.{{cite news |title=Fatmir Limaj’s brother promoted at University of Prizren |url=https://prishtinainsight.com/fatmir-limajs-brother-promoted-at-university-of-prizren/ |work=Prishtina Insight |date=10 July 2019}}
In the elections held in December 2010 he was third most voted leader in the whole country but he decided not to be part of the government.{{citation needed|date=December 2022}} In 2014, he co-founded the Initiative for Kosovo Party (NISMA).
Fatmir was Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo in the cabinet of Ramush Haradinaj from September 2017 to February 2020.
War crimes charges
Limaj was arrested on 18 February 2003, in Slovenia. The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) charged him, Isak Musliu and Haradin Bala with war crimes against Serbs and Albanians regarding illegal imprisonment, cruel treatment, inhuman acts, and murders in Lapušnik prison camp.{{cite book|title=Genocide, War Crimes, and Crimes Against Humanity|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V3hqQJkJSNcC&pg=PA1|publisher=Human Rights Watch|page=1}}{{cite news|title=UN court acquits top Kosovo rebel|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/4485658.stm|publisher=BBC News|accessdate=14 May 2010|date=30 November 2005}}International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. Press Release: "[http://www.icty.org/sid/8303 Haradin Bala, Isak Musliu, and Agim Murtezi Transferred to the ICTY following their Indictment for Crimes against Humanity and War Crimes]", The Hague, 18 February 2003; retrieved 7 April 2009.
On 4 March 2003, he was sent to The Hague, and on 15 November 2004, the trial began. In November 2005, Limaj was acquitted by the ICTY.
In September 2007, The Appeals Chamber found that "the Trial Chamber reasonably found that Fatmir Limaj does not incur criminal responsibility for any of the offences charged in the indictment," Judge Fausto Pocar said.{{cite web |title=The Tribunal's Appeals Chamber today upheld the Trial Chamber judgement in the case against former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) members Fatmir Limaj, Isak Musliu and Haradin Bala. |url=https://www.icty.org/en/press/tribunals-appeals-chamber-today-upheld-trial-chamber-judgement-case-against-former-kosovo |website=ICTY.org |date=27 September 2007}}
Limaj was charged in another war crime case by European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) known as the "Klecka case". Prosecutors alleged that Limaj and others kept Serb and Albanian prisoners in a camp in the village of Klecka, subjecting them to inhumane conditions and beatings; seven Serbs and one Albanian was killed by subordinates under Limaj's command.{{cite news |title=Kosovan MP pleads not guilty to war crimes |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2011/11/11/kosovan-mp-pleads-not-guilty-to-war-crimes |work=Al Jazeera |date=11 November 2011}} The indictment was largely based on the diary of former KLA soldier Agim Zogaj who was one of the guards at the camp and subsequently committed suicide after repeated threats on his life.{{cite web |last1=Nimoni |first1=Genc |title=How Witness X’s Diary Unlocked Kosovo’s Klecka Case |url=https://balkaninsight.com/2011/10/20/how-witness-x-s-diary-unlocked-kosovo-s-klecka-case/ |website=Balkan Insight |date=20 October 2011}} Limaj was acquitted in May 2012 along with three of his aides.{{cite news |title=Kosovo court acquits ex-rebel KLA leader and aides |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-17926150 |work=BBC |date=2 May 2012}} The court found that Zogaj ("Witness X")'s diary and testimony was inadmissible. However, in November 2012, the Kosovo Supreme Court overruled the decision and ordered a re-trial.{{cite web |last1=Aliu |first1=Fatmir |title=Klecka Case Sent to Retrial |url=https://balkaninsight.com/2012/11/21/fatmir-limaj-on-retrial-for-war-crimes/ |website=Balkan Insight |date=21 November 2012}} In May 2017, the Supreme Court acquitted him and the other defendants.{{cite web |last1=Qirezi |first1=Arben |title=Kosovo’s Top Court Acquits Limaj of War Crimes |url=https://balkaninsight.com/2017/05/25/kosovo-acquits-former-kla-commander-after-marathon-trial-05-25-2017-1/ |website=Balkan Insight |date=25 May 2017}}
In 2018, Limaj was found not guilty of war crimes by an international court for failing to prevent the killing of two Albanians during the Kosovo War.{{cite news |title=Kosovo deputy PM acquitted of war crime charges |url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/kosovo-deputy-pm-acquitted-of-war-crime-charges |work=FOX News |date=9 March 2018}}