Albulena Haxhiu

Kosovo's Justice Minister Albulena Haxhiu said on Monday that "for the first time, serious efforts are being made to deal with war crimes" after the Pristina authorities announced they are seeking 18 Serb suspects for arrest over the 1999 Recak/Racak massacre.

Pristina Basic Court of Pristina handed down its first-ever conviction for wartime sexual violence, sentencing former Serb policeman Zoran Vukotic to ten years in prison - a verdict that was hailed as a landmark by campaigners.

Vukotic was convicted of committing rape and participating in the expulsions of ethnic Albanian civilians from the town of Vushtrri/Vucitrn on May 22, 1999.

A man in Pristina votes at a polling station in the early parliamentary elections on October 6, 2019. Photo: EPA-EFE/GEORGI LICOVSKI

The decision came hours after the Constitutional Court ruled that Avdullah Hoti's current coalition government was illegitimate because it was voted into office with the help of an invalid vote cast by an MP with a criminal conviction.

The Constitutional Court ruled on Monday that Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti's government is illegitimate because it was voted in by a majority in the Kosovo Assembly that included a vote cast by MP Etem Arifi, who was given a prison sentence for corruption.

A street protest joined by opposition party supporters in Pristina on Wednesday demanded the resignation of the Chief Prosecutor, Aleksander Lumezi, over claims that he was undermining the fight against corruption.

They received between 14 and 18 months in jail for repeatedly releasing tear gas in the Assembly hall, but will not go to jail unless they re-offend over the next two years.

Albin Kurti, Albulena Haxhiu, Donika Kadaj-Bujupi and Faton Topali were found guilty and sentenced to 18, 15, 18, and 14 months respectively.

Albin Kurti, a member of the Kosovo Assembly from the opposition Self-Determination, has been arrested.

The arrest took place in front of the Assembly, Tanjug is reporting on Friday, citing RTK2.

Two other Self-Determination members of the Assembly, Albulena Haxhiu and Donika Kadaj-Bujupi, have also been arrested.

The arrest took place in front of the Assembly, Tanjug is reporting on Friday, citing RTK2.

Two other Self-Determination members of the Assembly, Albulena Haxhiu and Donika Kadaj-Bujupi, have also been arrested.

The Kosovo police announced on Wednesday they were looking for Kurti, after the Basic Court in Pristina issued a warrant for his arrest, local media reported.

A court in Kosovo has issued an arrest warrant for MP Albin Kurti, one of four MPs from Vetevendosje accused of letting off teargas in parliament last year, after he failed to show up for his trial in the capital Pristina.

A judge told the hearing that he would issue the warrant for Kurti's detention to secure his presence in court.

Police in Kosovo have now detained more than a third of opposition MPs following Monday's unrest, when MPs again disrupted parliament by setting off tear gas on two separate occasions.