Wrote: Etrit Rexhepi
An image has been published showing lawyer Lluka Misetic, while a circle has been placed to the side, inside which is a photograph of former president Hashim Thaçi.
Photography published on Wednesday (February 11) on Facebook, by the account named "Bekim Hoti", also has the caption "Hashim Thaçi was not in the KLA, he worked for the French Secret Service as a contractor for Serbian interests".
Mishetić is Thaçi's lawyer in the ongoing trial against him, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selim, at the Special Court in The Hague.
The caption placed on the image is not presented as a statement by Mishetić about Thaçi, but the text placed above his image during the defense hearing before the end of the trial implies that the claim is attributed to him.
What is the truth?
Hibrid.info found that such a claim has not come from either Thaçi's defense or the other parties in the judicial process.
The same post was also shared by the Facebook page called "Specbuk" which has over 44 thousand followers, and was also posted by another account called "Refiqe Hamiti" (see here and here).
The content of the commentators in these posts has focused on the assertion presented by this caption, without discussing the source of this information.
Because the image was taken during Mishetić's closing statement as Thaçi's defense attorney, hibrid.info researched the website of the Specialist Chambers and the Special Prosecutor's Office.
Closing statements in the trial of Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi before the Specialist Chambers in The Hague began to be presented on Monday (9 February) and will continue until 18 February (see here).
However, in this source of information of these institutions, no transcript of the statements of this phase of the trial has been found and published (see here).
Due to the lack of data, hibrid.info has researched credible media outlets that have reported on the developments there. The media outlet that has reported in the most detail on this phase of the process is “Radio Free Europe”.
In the three articles of this medium where reports on the statement of the prosecution, the victims' defense and Hashim Thaçi's defense lawyer were presented, no fact was found that would prove that the claim of the content of the inscription discussed in this article was stated during these three days of this phase of the trial (see here, here and here).
So, the claim that "Hashim Thaçi was not in the KLA and that he worked for the French Secret Service as a contractor for Serbian interests", has not been stated by either his defense attorney or the prosecution and the victims' defense attorneys.
Hibrid.info also checked using the "Google" search engine with the words that represent the caption of the claim.
The search results showed no credible source reporting the claim in question, either as a factual statement or as a statement quote (see here).
In Rule 135 “Closing Statements” of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence before the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (see here), the first point states that "The Specialized Prosecutor is the first to make the closing statement, followed by the victim advocate and the specialized defense attorney.".
The second point states that "Closing statements may mention the admitted evidence and its credibility, the credibility of witnesses, the documentation of the process and relevant legal provisions. Illustrative material and summaries of evidence may also be used, if they are based on the admitted evidence.".
Point 1 of Rule 136 “Closing of the Court Case” stipulates that “After closing statements, the presiding judge of the trial panel declares the case closed.".
Furthermore, in point 1 of Rule 137 “General Provisions” it is stated that “The parties may present evidence relevant to the case. In accordance with Rule 132, the panel may order the production of evidence, or the calling of witnesses, which it deems necessary for the determination of the truth.", and in point 2 "A panel freely evaluates all evidence presented to determine its admissibility and relevance.".
Rule 138 “Admissibility of Evidence”, in point 1, states that “Unless objected to or excluded proprio motu, evidence presented to the trial panel is admissible only if it is relevant to the case, has probative value, and its probative value is not negated by its prejudicial effect.".
After the case is closed, Rule 158 “Decisions on the Trial Decision” states that “The trial panel retires to deliberate in camera, to pronounce the trial verdict regarding the charges in the indictment.". In point 2 it says that "The trial panel decides separately on each charge, including each relevant form of criminal liability. In the case of joint trials, separate conclusions are drawn for each accused.", and in point 3 "A finding of guilt is only reached if the majority of the jury is satisfied that guilt has been proven beyond reasonable doubt.".
Whereas, Rule 159 “Pronunciation of the trial decision”, in point 1, indicates that the trial decision is pronounced within ninety (90) days after the closure of the court case according to Rule 136.
Therefore, even if a claim were mentioned during the closing statements, it could not be taken as a proven fact, since the closing statements present the positions and arguments of the parties, while the legal truth of the claims is determined exclusively by the decision of the trial panel.
Analyze:
Several Facebook accounts have published an image from the court hearing in The Hague, showing lawyer Lluka Misetic, with a caption claiming that Hashim Thaci "was not in the KLA and that he worked for the French Secret Service", implying that this claim was made in court.
After verifying official sources and credible media reports, hibrid.info has found no evidence that such a statement was made by the defense, prosecution, or other parties in the process. Also, online searches do not result in any credible source reporting this claim.
Therefore, based on its work methodology, hibrid.info assesses the content as "Fake News".
Reasoning:
The “Fake News” rating is given to informational content that is entirely fabricated or that contains factually incorrect claims or information. Content that is rated as fake news can be defined as having been created and distributed with the intent to misinform the public, i.e., to present a claim that is completely false as fact.