POLL Serbs from Leposavic: We want special forces to leave, this is not normal

The citizens of Leposavic have gathered once again in large numbers today to sign a petition for the withdrawal of special police forces from the north, and they all agreed that they were doing so because they felt threatened and scared.

A Kosovo Online reporter spoke to several Serbs who signed the petition in Leposavic.

Aleksandar Tanaskovic said that he and his neighbors wanted a normal life without heavily armed special forces on the streets every day.

"It is really unpleasant to see people with long guns patrolling our areas. That is the main reason for signing the petition today, as well as a request to all relevant institutions to withdraw the special forces and let us continue to live a normal life," Tanaskovic said.

Zorana Vasic emphasized that they wanted to show that they could no longer tolerate the terror of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti.

"We don't want to be afraid, to be arrested, for our brothers, sisters, and godparents to be arrested, or for children to ask when they stop us at a checkpoint - Mom, why, what's happening. To be afraid of being stopped wherever we go. We don't know what could happen to us because they arrest people on a whim or whoever they can catch. We don't want to endure that," Vasic said.

She emphasized that they were demanding that the "long guns" be withdrawn so that they could continue to live as peacefully as possible.

Veselin Radovic stated that they had gathered to express their protest against the Kosovo Police special forces, which were, as he said, illegally present in those areas.

"We are demanding our rights, freedom of movement. We don't want our basic rights to be usurped," Radovic said.

Aleksandar Miletic said that citizens had gathered on their own initiative and started the petition with the basic and only demand that special units of the Kosovo Police be withdrawn from the north of Kosovo so that Serbs could live freely.

"It's not normal, they say this is a democratic country, it's not normal for there to be long guns in democratic conditions, for people not to feel safe in these areas, and that's precisely because of the presence of a large number of special police units in our area, causing unrest among citizens," Miletic said.