Hungary Extradites Serb Suspected Of War Crimes To Kosovo

Kosovar Justice Minister Abelard Tahiri did not name the man, but said he had been extradited by Budapest after "full guarantees" were given to respect the man's "dignity and rights." (file photo)

PRISTINA -- Kosovo's justice minister has said that a Serbian man wanted in connection with a 1999 massacre in Kosovo has been extradited from Hungary.

In a statement on May 17, Abelard Tahiri did not name the man, but said he had been extradited by Budapest after "full guarantees" were given to respect the man's "dignity and rights."

There was no immediate confirmation of the extradition by Hungary.

Kosovar media said the man reportedly participated in the massacre of 113 Albanian men in a town west of the capital, Pristina, on March 26, 1999.

The killings occurred one day after NATO started its bombing campaign against Serbian targets.

The NATO campaign lasted 78 days, and ended a Serbian crackdown against ethnic Albanians.

At the time, Kosovo was then a province of Serbia; in 2008, it declared its independence from Serbia in 2008, something Belgrade has not recognized.

More than 10,000 people died in the fighting.

With reporting by AP