Serb List: Continued persecution of Serbs in Kosovo, war crimes arrests without a single piece of evidence

The Serb List said today that the authorities in Pristina had continued arresting Serbs in Kosovo on war crimes charges without any evidence of the detainees’ guilt. Such actions are a continuation of the persecution of Serbs in Kosovo, the statement warned.

According to the statement, Zikica Belosevic was arrested early this morning in the presence of children and staff at a kindergarten in Osojane, followed by the arrests of Grujica Belosevic and Obrad Tijanic from Crkolez.

“Belosevic is an honourable man, a kindergarten employee and a father of three who has spent his entire life in Kosovo and Metohija. His father was killed in 2000, and his arrest, along with the arrests of the others in the village of Crkolez, has deeply alarmed the entire Serbian community. Arrangements are under way to provide legal assistance so that they can defend themselves against these unjustified detentions and charges, and our representatives are in direct contact with their families,” the statement said.

The Serb List warned that arrests on war crimes charges, without credible evidence of guilt and individual responsibility, represented a continuation of the persecution of Serbs in Kosovo.

“We call on international representatives to respond and become involved in these proceedings. They have an obligation to monitor the work of the Kosovo Police and prosecution service and prevent the abuse of institutions for the purpose of ethnically persecuting Serbs,” the statement concluded.

The Office for Kosovo and Metohija also responded to the latest arrests of Serbs in Kosovo on war crimes charges.