Gracanica: Marked 24 years since the death of Nikola and Marija Petrovic in the NATO attack on the "Nis-Ekspres" bus

Today, a memorial service was held at the Gracanica cemetery on the occasion of the 24th anniversary of the death of Nikola and Marija Petrovic from Gracanica, and their grandmother, who perished on May 1, 1999, in the NATO bombing of a bus on the Pristina-Nis main road, near Luzane.

In addition to parents Dragisa and Zorica Petrovic, the funeral was attended by friends, relatives, and presidents of the Provisional Authority of Pristina and Lipjan.

After the memorial service, the gathered paid their respects in front of the memorial plaque erected in memory of Nikola (17) and Maria (15) in the yard of the Elementary School "King Milutin" in Gracanica.

Dragisa and Zorica Petrovic had only Marija and Nikola. Father Dragisa, with tears in his eyes, says that 24 years have passed like 24 days.

"It's getting harder and harder. She is overcome by the disease. We don't even know what to do anymore. We don't have the strength to talk, but we have to fight so that it won't be forgotten. Every year we will visit their grave, so they know they are not alone until we have the strength. This is what the villains did, the murderers, I don't know how the one who shot at the bridge and the bus full of passengers, who caused pain not to me but to everyone, feels. We cannot come to terms with that, the desire remains but the culprits will not answer for what they did, and they killed innocent people," Dragisa Petrovic said.

Mother Zorica also says that they are losing strength, but that they will still fight as long as they are on their feet, to visit the grave and light a candle for their children.

"Bad thoughts went through my head that day when I heard, I thought I would take my own life, or welcome them dead in the house. It's hard for me that I went through everything alone, but here I am living for 24 years, because if it weren't for me, there would be no one who would go out to their cemetery, to the memorial service, to light a candle for them, so I remember again to relive that day. We will fight while we are on our feet," Zorica says with tears in her eyes.

Miodrag Zivic, who was a schoolmate of Marije, says that their eighth-grade, and there friendship, were interrupted by the bombing.

"It is important to remember Marija and Nikola so that we don't forget what the NATO aggressor did to our country. I was in the eighth grade with Marija, we didn't finish it, because the bombing interrupted it. Marija was a wonderful girl, she helped everyone, especially us boys at school at that time with homework. And I remember Nikola as someone who was older than us, a cheerful young man who played folklore. It's terrible what happened," Zivic said.

Milan Joksimovic, president of the Provisional Body of the Municipality of Lipjan, addressed the audience, who pointed out that Serbs had been living in fear and pain in Kosovo for the last 24 years.

"It is up to us to come every year and share our grief with the parents of the young Petrovic who perished. We must remember both them and all the victims who perished in Kosovo," Joksimovic said.

On this day, in 1999, 60 people were killed in the "Nis Ekspres" passenger bus, which was cut in half by a missile from a NATO aircraft while crossing the bridge in Luzane near Pristina.

A memorial plaque was placed at the scene of the accident in Luzane in memory of the victims. The names and surnames of 31 people, mostly of Albanian nationality, were written on it, and the names of Marija, Nikola, and other martyred Serbs were not listed, but three dots were placed.

The attack on the "Nis-Ekspres" bus was carried out on May 1 around noon, in completely clear weather, which means that the NATO pilots clearly saw what they were targeting.