PARIS — A UN war crimes tribunal Thursday acquitted the former prime minister of Kosovo, Ramush Haradinaj, for the second time of torturing and killing Serb civilians while he was a commander of the NATO-backed Kosovo Liberation Army during its fight for independence in 1999.

Two of his comrades, Idriz Balaj and Lahi Brahimaj, were also acquitted, although Brahimaj has already served a six-year sentence for torture handed down in an earlier trial. The judges ordered the three men released immediately.