"International community should protect Serbs"

"International community should protect Serbs"

The Committee underlined that persons behind attacks on Serbs and their property over the last two weeks should be brought to justice urgently.

Marko Đurić, director of the government's Office for Kosovo, informed the Committee about the security situation in Kosovo, and the debate engaged members of the Serb list, officials from Serb municipalities and heads of districts in the province.

Đurić said that over the last two weeks more than 30 incidents against Serbs and their property took place in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija.

He said that the attacks became more frequent after the incident at the football match between Serbia and Albania in Belgrade on October 14 when a drone carrying a banner depicting the so-called Greater Albania, a nationalist project that would include parts of Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Greece, made several passes over the pitch.

Đurić said that slogans in Arab and Albanian have been daubed on Serb property glorifying the Islamic State, adding that this indicates that religious extremism and fanaticism is picking up steam among a number of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija.

He underlined that the Albanian extremists who attacked Serbs, their property and daubed slogans of hatred have not been identified and punished yet.

Vinka Radosavljević, head of the Peć District, said that the situation in Klina, Istok and Peć is very difficult, adding that Serbs living in these areas have decided to inform Belgrade, Priština and Brussels about this by letter.

“Serbs are forced to do this due to constant and serious attacks and they believe that unless the attacks cease, they will have to leave the area,” Radosavljević said.

In the conclusions adopted after the debate, members of the Committee on Kosovo urged the Albanian political leaders to confront extremists, not only verbally, but also physically.