An adviser of Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj has been interrogated as a "suspect" in a probe of alleged war crimes committed during the conflict, his lawyer told AFP Thursday.
Sylejman Selimi, 48, was questioned Wednesday in Pristina by representatives of the Hague-based special tribunal investigating crimes allegedly committed by ethnic Albanian guerilla movement, Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA).
Selimi was a top KLA officer during the 1998-1999 independence war with Serbian forces that claimed more than 13,000 lives.
"As he was interrogated as suspect, the prosecutor has two options: to close the investigation (or) to indict him if he believes there is enough evidence," Tome Gashi said.
Selimi was already jailed by local judiciary for crimes committed against civilians, but released in late January and immediately appointed as political adviser to Haradinaj, himself a top KLA commander during the war.
The decision was criticised by the ambassador of the United States, who in principle provide diplomatic support to Kosovo authorities.
"Convicted war criminals have no place in Kosovo's government," Philip S. Kosnett tweeted on Thursday, adding that "supporting such individuals... calls into question Kosovo's commitment to the rule of law".
Selimi was commander of units in the western Drenica area, one of the guerrilla strongholds where fighting with Serbian forces were particularly tough.
He led civilian security until 2011, when he became Kosovo's ambassador to Albania.
However, he resigned just before being charged with torture at a KLA detention centre.
In mid-January, the special court began interrogations in The Hague, where two other former KLA officials, Rrustem Mustafa-Remi, 47, and Sami Lushtaku, 57, were interviewed.
The EU-backed court was set up in 2015 to try war crimes allegedly committed by the KLA, notably against Serbs, Romas and Kosovo Albanian political opponents during and after the war.
Kosovo media believe that first indictments are likely to be issued this year.
