Nikolic: More and more Israelis understand why Kosovo is for Serbs what Galilee is for them

Honorary Consul of Serbia in Israel, Aleksandar Nikolic, stated that the conflict in the Gaza Strip is a "horrific war vortex that has resulted in civilian suffering on all sides," but also warned of the growing rise of antisemitism against the Jewish community in Western metropolises. Nikolic emphasized that due to recent events in the north of the country, more and more Israelis understand why Kosovo is for Serbs not only their Jerusalem but also their Galilee.

Commenting on the anniversary of the beginning of the conflict in Gaza, Nikolic believes that since October 7 of last year, there has been a "collapse of the political-security situation worldwide."

"From then until today, we have witnessed an increasingly complex situation, not only in the political-security aspects worldwide but also in the rise of unforgivable antisemitism," Nikolic said.

He emphasizes that such messages are increasingly heard in Western metropolises and even in the highest intellectual circles.

"I never thought I would live to see the day when the presidents of such prestigious globally regarded universities like Columbia and Penn were unable to answer such simple questions before the US Congress Commission about calls for violence against Jewish students. We are not talking about the legitimate right to criticize the policy of a foreign government or the consequences of military actions, as it is clear that civilian victims of this horrific war, which is already entering its second unimaginable year, exist on all sides. We are talking about brutal outbursts of hatred toward local Jewish communities in some Western metropolises," Nikolic emphasized.

Speaking about the current situation in Israel, the Serbian Honorary Consul says that the population is living in fear, especially due to the fact that part of Israel is facing rocket fire and drones for the first time, and the entire country is under threat from ballistic "surface-to-surface" missiles recently launched from Iran.

The "northern sector," including Galilee and the port of Haifa, has been most affected by the warfare.

"There is no doubt that society here is living in anxiety. The last few days have shown that the war is affecting people through both rocket fire and drone incursions, not only from Lebanon but also from the east. This is primarily the northern sector, i.e., western Upper and Lower Galilee, as well as Israel's third-largest city, the northern Mediterranean port of Haifa. In the central and southern parts of the country, the situation is much more relaxed and normal. However, this points to the general anxiety of the local population. Even if people are not territorially endangered, their family members, their loved ones, have been drafted into the reserves, and there is no doubt that the concern is significant not only regarding developments in Lebanon but also about the broader regional escalations," Nikolic explained.

He believes that the war in the Gaza Strip has diverted global attention from the issue of Kosovo, but at the same time, it has shown that there is less and less room to present Kosovo as a sui generis case – a unique case.

"There is no doubt that the existing horrific wars and other open conflicts around the world, at certain intervals, divert attention from Kosovo and Metohija, despite the complex situation faced by the remaining Serbian population in the southern Serbian province. However, despite ongoing attempts to treat Kosovo and Metohija as a unique case, sui generis, there is less room to manipulate this narrative and avoid viewing the disregard for Security Council resolutions and international law in general in analogous cases in other turbulent regions of the world," Nikolic stressed.

He adds that one of the key causes of the current conflicts is the violation of Resolution 1701 from 2006.

"When we talk about the Levant, that is, this current horrific conflict in the Middle East, the issue of the fate of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 from 2006 has certainly been brought to the forefront, especially regarding the failure to implement troop separation, which has led to tragic consequences," Nikolic added.

He explains that for informed Israeli citizens, as the conflict expands into Galilee, Serbia's position on Kosovo is becoming more understandable.

"Kosovo is not only our Jerusalem, which it certainly and above all is in its spiritual, civilizational, and national-historical context. Kosovo is also our Galilee when speaking to people here. Like Kosovo and Metohija, which is an inalienable part of Serbia, Galilee is part of the sovereign territory of Israel but also shares a complex demographic situation. This interests the interlocutor because it raises the question of the latent dangers posed by the current situation to him, and thus the nature of imposing solutions without the consensus of the directly involved parties in the dispute becomes apparent. Ultimately, it raises the question of whether a contract is final, whether it resolves mutual claims or is merely a springboard for further, even more difficult claims," Nikolic concluded.