Stöckinger: Arrest in Gorazdevac another attempt to intimidate Serbs, solidarity with Dimitrijevic and Zdravkovic

Austrian peace activist David Stöckinger condemned the arrest of Milos Dimitrijevic and Ranko Zdravkovic from Gorazdevac, describing it as yet another attempt to intimidate Serbs.

Stöckinger expressed solidarity with Dimitrijevic and Zdravkovic, who were placed in 48-hour detention on suspicion of having committed the criminal offense of "giving or receiving a bribe in connection with voting," as stated by the Kosovo Police.

"The daily harassment and politically motivated terror carried out by Kurti's authorities against the remaining Serbs in Kosovo has now reached my friends and comrades in the small enclave of Gorazdevac as well," Stöckinger wrote on Facebook.

He noted that members of a special police unit arrested Milos and Ranko in their homes today, in front of their families and grandchildren, and took them to Pec.

"Milos and Ranko are well-known figures and steadfast representatives of the Serbs in Metohija for many decades. I have been providing humanitarian support to the enclave of Gorazdevac for many years, and I know Milos in particular as a highly dedicated representative of the local community. The Kosovo Prosecutor's Office is currently deciding whether to order their detention and, if so, for how long. It is obvious that all of this is an attempt at intimidation aimed at making life for Serbs on their own land as unbearable as possible. Freedom for Milos and Ranko," the Austrian activist wrote.

Alongside the post, he shared a photograph from 2019 showing him with Dimitrijevic at his home in Gorazdevac.