Protestors breach Ministry of Justice after state fails to prevent axe murder
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Public protests intensified today, with demonstrators breaching the Ministry of Justice courtyard in Pristina to demand accountability and the resignation of institutional leaders, including Second Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora Donika Gërvalla-Schwarz, following the murder of Arlinda Zekaj. Protests also continued in Ferizaj, calling for justice for Zekaj and other victims of violence.
New details emerged from the prosecutor's file, indicating that Albert Sylaj allegedly killed Arlinda Zekaj by striking her multiple times with an axe. Further scrutiny of institutional failures revealed that a police commander reportedly told Zekaj, 'I have no obligation to deal with you,' prior to her death. Ehat Miftaraj, Executive Director of the Kosovo Law Institute, stated that state mechanisms failed to provide assistance in the case.
In other significant developments, the trial in absentia against Milan Radoičić and 19 others for the murder of 107 civilians in Gjakovë is set to begin on December 21st. The Appeals Court also upheld the life sentence for Naim Murseli for the murder of Liridona Ademaj. The Assembly of Kosovo convened to discuss the 2026 budget and the establishment of a Bureau for Property Confiscation, while the Kosovo Security Force received trucks from Germany.