A small number of Serbs came out for All Souls' Day in South Mitrovica; almost all gravestones destroyed

According to the Orthodox calendar, today marks the summer All Souls' Day (Zadusnice), and the residents of North Mitrovica visited the graves of their loved ones at the cemetery in South Mitrovica this morning.

There are very few graves in South Mitrovica that remain undamaged; most of them have been completely destroyed, making it difficult to recognize the burial mounds.

A few dozen citizens went to light candles for the souls of the deceased this morning.

It is unprecedented for such a small number of people to visit the graves, according to those we encountered next to the demolished and vandalized gravestones. They attribute this to the current situation and people's fear that something might happen.

"Look at how it is, you can see for yourself. It's difficult, I don't know where the graves of my uncles, godfather, and friends are," says one of the citizens who still maintains hope that one day the cemetery will be restored.

A few meters away, a woman in tears mourns her son, whose grave has been vandalized beyond recognition.

"It's difficult, but I decided to come today even if I died. My son was buried in 1994. I don't have the strength to speak, the picture says it all," she told us.

The small number of people attending is attributed to fear and the fact that people cannot locate the graves of their loved ones.

"Fewer and fewer people are coming. You can see the situation for yourself, and where can they come when everything is destroyed? Fewer people will come," one of the citizens said.

The Kosovo police were noticeable in the vicinity of the cemetery.

At the Orthodox cemetery in South Mitrovica, over 85 percent of the gravestones have been destroyed or desecrated.