Driton Gashi, the former head of Kosovo's Intelligence Agency, has been sentenced to nearly five years in prison for orchestrating the clandestine deportation of six Turkish citizens to Turkey in 2018. A Pristina court found Gashi guilty of abusing his authority by expelling the individuals – five teachers and one doctor – without proper legal proceedings. The court also barred him from holding public office for four years following his release.

The six deportees, who worked at schools linked to the Gulen movement, were accused of posing a national security risk, though these allegations were never substantiated in court. Gashi bypassed established legal protocols, failing to inform key government figures like the prime minister, president, and prosecutor general, as required by law. Upon their arrival in Turkey, the individuals were promptly arrested and imprisoned.

This controversial action sparked widespread condemnation at the time from human rights organizations, the then-U.S. ambassador to Kosovo, and students. The deportations occurred amidst a broader crackdown by the Turkish government on individuals suspected of ties to Fethullah Gulen, a U.S.-based cleric whom Ankara accuses of orchestrating a failed coup attempt in 2016. Then-Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj characterized the deportations as a joint intelligence operation between Kosovo and Turkey, but subsequently dismissed both Gashi and the interior minister, citing a breach of established procedures.