45 yrs' prison sought for Kosovo former president

THE HAGUE, Feb 09 (Reuters): International war crimes prosecutors said on Monday Kosovo's former president Hashim Thaci controlled ethnic Albanian guerrillas and should be convicted of war crimes and sentenced to 45 years in prison.

Thaci and three other ex-Kosovo Liberation Army commanders are charged with persecution, murder, torture and forced disappearances of people during and shortly after the 1998-99 uprising that eventually brought independence for the Albanian majority region from Serbia.

"The accused committed crimes against their perceived opponents to take control over Kosovo," prosecutor Kimberly West told the court in The Hague. She added that in 1998 and 1999 more than 100 political opponents and perceived collaborators with Serbian security forces were killed and hundreds abused in and around 50 detention camps run by the KLA.