Kosovo Interior Minister Xhelal Sveçla sentenced to one year in prison for throwing tear gas at Parliament

2026-09-08 09:48:40Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
Kosovo Interior Minister Xhelal Sveçla sentenced to one year in prison
Xhelal Sveçla

Kosovo's acting Minister of Internal Affairs, Xhelal Sveçla, has been sentenced to one year in suspended prison for throwing tear gas at the Parliament in 2018.

The decision was made by the Basic Court in Pristina, which found Sveçla guilty of the criminal offense of "use of a weapon or dangerous vehicle."

The sentence is conditional, meaning that Sveçla will not serve the prison sentence if he does not commit another criminal offense during the one-year probation period. Sveçla was not present in the courtroom when the verdict was announced.

During the trial, the acting minister pleaded not guilty. He had described the tear gas attack on the Parliament as a political activity, arguing that at the time, as an opposition MP, he was opposing the ratification of the border demarcation agreement with Montenegro.

Also accused in the same court case are the acting Minister of Environment, Spatial Planning and Infrastructure, Fitore Pacolli, former Vetëvendosje MP Salih Zyba, and former Democratic League of Kosovo MP Drita Millaku.


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