Parents of the arrested young men in North Mitrovica: They were brutally mistreated, we don’t know their condition

The parents of four young men who were arrested around midnight in North Mitrovica told Kosovo Online that their children had been brutally mistreated during their arrest. They claim that the young men were dragged on the ground while their cries for help were silenced with knees. Until this morning, they didn’t even know the youths were being held in custody in South Mitrovica, and they have not been allowed to see them yet.

Ljubomir Milic, the father of a 19-year-old arrested young man, told Kosovo Online that the young men were arrested in a brutal manner.

“We have hit rock bottom when they started arresting our children in such a cruel way, based on the footage we have seen, which was recorded by our citizens. They heard our children’s cries for help,” Milic said.

As he added, the police claimed the Serbian youths attacked officers, but he noted that the officers were in plain clothes.

“They probably provoked our children, and later, as confirmed by the footage, about twenty officers brutally mistreated them. Our children were on the ground, on the street, being mistreated and literally trampled. My son’s cries, as well as those of the other children, were silenced with knees,” Milic explained.

He emphasized that groups of two or three officers had mistreated each of the young men.

Milic also stated that he had spent the entire night at the police station but was unable to get any information.

He added that he had called for an ambulance to examine the young men and check their condition, believing he had the right to do so.

“However, of course, they didn’t allow them in, nor did they provide any answers. When we asked how they were, they told us they were fine, but we hadn’t seen them. We don’t know their condition, nor where they are, until half an hour ago when a colleague told us they are all in the southern part and that they are waiting for the prosecutor,” he said.

Sonja Radenkovic, the mother of one of the arrested youths, said that she had managed to see her son this morning and that he had been in very poor condition.

“They took him to South Mitrovica. One of them told me he was a criminal. When I came at 7 AM, a colleague told me they had endured great stress and were terrified,” she told Kosovo Online.

She emphasized that twenty people had attacked the four youths.

“I think the police should have punished them, arrested them, called us parents, but not acted the way they did. There are recordings showing how they were mistreated and dragged on the ground. One of them said, ‘Colleague’s shirt is torn.’ They were defending themselves, and you can see that in the footage. We asked for doctors to examine the children, but they didn’t allow it,” Radenkovic added.

As she said, they were told they wouldn’t be able to see them for 48 hours, and the only thing they could do was call lawyers, as the authorities claim they are criminals and a gang.

“These are kids, young people, and even if they made a mistake, violence is not the way to solve it. That’s exactly what we are talking about, that we are all supposed to be equal. I’m a mother, just like any other,” Radenkovic said.

Ivana Kovacevic, the mother of L.K., who was also arrested last night, said the young men were on their way to a birthday party in Zvecan when the incident occurred.

“They were beaten for 10 minutes before being arrested, I learned this from my older son, who is in Belgrade, and saw it on the footage. They didn’t let us see them during the night. They first told us they were here until 6 AM, but then we learned they had been taken to the southern part, as they have cells for sobering up there. They are trying to convince us that the children are fine and were taken to see a doctor, but we haven’t seen any of it,” Kovacevic said.

As she emphasized, the police told the parents that the youths would be in custody for 48 hours and that everything depends on what the prosecutor says. After that, legal proceedings will likely begin.

She accused the police of abusing their authority.

“These are kids, and as the footage on social media shows, they were beaten for 10 minutes. These are peaceful kids who have never had any trouble with the law. Maybe there was some verbal insult, but absolutely nothing happened to justify the children physically attacking them, as we were told, that an official was physically assaulted. I don’t believe that. To see our children beaten, screaming, and crying for help... I just don’t know,” Kovacevic said.

Srdjan Jovic, a professor at the Faculty of Technical Sciences in Kosovska Mitrovica and the parent of one of the arrested young men, also spoke out on the social network X.

“Just now in KM, my son was beaten and arrested by Kurti’s police. They tormented the kids who were celebrating a birthday. I called for an ambulance, but they won’t allow doctors to examine them. They also arrested a passerby who filmed the torture. This is Kurti’s regime. Is there any life left here?” Jovic wrote.