Rahim Ademi (born 30 January 1954) is a retired Croatian Army general of Kosovar Albanian origin.
Biography
Born and raised in the village of Karač, Vushtrri, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (modern day Kosovo), Ademi graduated from the Yugoslav Military Academy in Belgrade in 1976. He was assigned to a station in Rogoznica near Šibenik in Croatia where he married and had two children.
In 1986, the Military Court in Sarajevo convicted him of counterrevolutionary acts and Albanian irredentism, but after serving a year and a half in prison, the Supreme Military Court agreed with his appeal and acquitted him. He would spend the next years serving as an officer in Sinj until 1990 when the war in Croatia was starting and he deserted the Yugoslav People's Army in order to help create Croatian army formations. In 1993 he was assigned to the post of sub commander of the Gospić military district, but was relieved of duty later that year, after the controversial Operation Medak pocket. He later served as a sub-commander of the Split military district and was promoted to brigadier general for his achievements in Operation Storm in 1995. He remained there until 1999 when he was reassigned to the post of the Assistant Chief Inspector of the Armed Forces in Zagreb.
In 2001, the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) indicted Ademi for crimes against humanity allegedly committed against the Croatian Serbs in the Medak pocket. He was originally in the custody of the Court but was later allowed to prepare his defense free. In November 2005, in line with its completion strategy, the ICTY referred the Ademi-Norac case to the Croatian judiciary. The trial began on 18 June 2007 in front of a special bench of the Zagreb County Court with Judge Marin Mrčela presiding.
In March 2010, the Supreme Court of Croatia upheld Ademi's acquittal.
During campaign for the 2014–15 presidential election, Ademi worked as a co-coordinator for Ivo Josipović.