Kosovo Serbs protest arrest of 5 war crime suspects

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) – Hundreds of Kosovo Serbs gathered Monday in the village of Pasjan to protest the recent arrest of five Serbs suspected of war crimes.

The Pristina Basic Court on Saturday ordered one month of detention for the ethnic Serbs on suspicion of committing war crimes in the municipalities of Gnjilane, Kosovo Polje and Zvecan in 1999.

The detentions are pending further legal proceedings.

The protesters argued that the accused are innocent and demanded their release.

They said the five ethnic Serbs have been living in Kosovo since the conflict and none of them had left the country, adding they had committed no crimes.

According to the protesters, the arrests are meant to cause fear and drive Serbs out of Kosovo.

Kosovo Serbs have urged the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) and NATO's peacekeeping mission in Kosovo (KFOR) to stop political actions against ethnic Serbs in Kosovo.

The Kosovo Special Prosecution Office said the individuals were arrested following a months-long investigation.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic called for greater international support to counter what he described as unjust practices against Serbs in Kosovo.

Vucic also accused international representatives of turning a blind eye to the plight of the Serbian community.

Meanwhile, Kosovo police raided at least nine Serbian post office branches near its northern border with Serbia on Monday.

Less than three months ago, Kosovo authorities was carried out similar action, after which all financial institutions of the Republic of Serbia in Kosovo were closed.

Kosovo declared its unilateral independence from Serbia on Feb. 17, 2008, but Serbia still sees Kosovo as its "own territory."