In the Specialized Chambers of Kosovo in The Hague, the judicial process against the former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army is continuing. In today's session, the witness Steven Russell is being heard, who is accompanied by representatives of the American government. This is the first session after the summer break in the case of Thaçi and others, where the beginning of the session was accompanied by some technical problems. Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli and Rexhep Selimi are present in the courtroom, while Jakup Krasniqi is following the session via video link.

The American soldier, Steven Russell, started his testimony with the questions from the specialized prosecutor Matthew Halling regarding the disarmament of the Kosovo Liberation Army and the delivery of weapons from the KLA to KFOR.

Halling: According to your experience, did the KLA respect the rules it had agreed to through this agreement?

Russell: They set up a collection area for weapons in our area, they also delivered some weapons to weapons storage sites, but in terms of the consistency of these commitments, that has not happened." they said.

The witness was presented with a card, which, according to the prosecutor, says "Ministry of Public Order - official letter for Selim Krasniqi". He was asked if he had seen such cards among members of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

Halling: You can see on the screen a card that says 'Ministry of Public Order, official ID for Selim Krasniqi'. Did you see such similar cards or IDs in the hands of the KLA at that time?

Russell: Yes, we have seen IDs of this nature, we have also seen illegal government documents as well as illegal IDs or identification cards that had not been approved by the relevant authorities.

Halling: As you said, you didn't know who the minister of public order was in the UKC at that time, right?

Russell: In further developments we learned and received information about further structures, however at first we did not know at all who many of the members of the government were at the time.

Halling: At the very end of this document it says the minister of public order, Rexhep Selimi, and there is a signature there. I would request that the document be presented as evidence." concludes the specialized prosecutor.

Witness Steven Russell stated that in the period from June to September 1999, they had the responsibility to establish order in accordance with the resolution 1244 of the United Nations. During the interview of the Specialized Prosecutor's Office, he added that the UNMIK police were not active during this period.

The witness of the Specialized Prosecutor's Office was also asked about the presence of the International Criminal Court in Kosovo. Russell said that he remembers that in the period from June to September of 1999 there was a presence of TPNj.

The chairman of the court, Charles Smith, said that the testimony of this witness is expected to last about a day, the ZPS has planned an hour and a half for the questions, while the defense has estimated that it needs five hours for cross-examination.

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