Kosovo President Resigns to Face War Crimes Charges

Kosovo president Hashim Thaci, a leading commander during Kosovo’s war for independence, has resigned in order to face charges on war crimes and crimes against humanity at a special court based in The Hague.
Thaci announced his resignation at a news conference on Thursday. He said he was taking the step “to protect the integrity of the presidency of Kosovo.”
He said his resignation from his post is effective immediately.
Thaci was indicted by a Kosovo court based in The Hague which was set up to try alleged crimes of former ethnic Albanian rebel leaders.
A spokesman for the prosecutor in The Hague told The Associated Press that he had no comment on Thaci’s announcement.