Specialist Prosecutor Jack Smith visits Kosovo

Specialist Prosecutor Jack Smith is visiting Kosovo for the first time, the Specialist Prosecutors Office has announced in a press release.

According to this, Smith had "a series of meetings with international and Kosovo officials."

"In the course of his visit, he is meeting, among others, with the heads of international organizations, representatives of EU member states and Kosovo Justice Minister Abelard Tahiri, as well as senior officials in the Justice Ministry," Smith's office said.

Smith was selected for the position of Specialist Prosecutor after a process organized by the European Union and appointed by EULEX Head of Mission, Alexandra Papadopoulou and took office on September 11, the press release noted.

"Smith is a US prosecutor with experience in both high-level political investigations and international criminal investigations.
He succeeded David Schwendiman, the first specialist prosecutor and formerly lead prosecutor of the Special Investigative Task Force, who stepped down at the end of March when his term as a US Foreign Service Officer expired," the Prosecutor's Office said.

The Specialist Prosecutor's Office is investigating crimes alleged in the Council of Europe's 2011 Report Inhuman treatment of people and illicit trafficking in human organs in Kosovo.