The Kosovo Special Prosecution and Kosovo Police have announced the arrest of five individuals, identified by their initials D.C., D.N., N.S., S.J., and M.S., on suspicion of committing war crimes in the municipalities of Gnjilane, Kosovo Polje, and Zvecan in 1999. Pročitaj više

According to the joint statement, the suspects, along with other unidentified members of their group, allegedly armed and dressed in camouflage and irregular Serbian police or military uniforms, carried out an operation on April 5, 1999. The operation targeted the villages of Inatovce, Lovac, Podgrađa, and Ugljare, where they are accused of deliberately killing, wounding, burning alive, taking hostages, raping, beating, torturing, physically and psychologically abusing, looting, and destroying Albanian properties and homes. They are also accused of expelling Albanian civilians and desecrating cultural and religious sites.

The statement emphasizes that these crimes are punishable under local laws, the customs of war, the Geneva Conventions, and their additional protocols.

Serbian Government: Arrests based on false accusations

The Office for Kosovo and Metohija of the Serbian Government has declared that the arrests were based on false accusations of alleged war crimes, asserting that these individuals have lived peacefully at their homes for years without any issues.

The Office confirmed the identities of the arrested individuals as Dragan Cvetkovic, Dragan Bilic, Milos Sosic, Slobodan Jevtic, and Nenad Stojanovic.

„Slobodan Jevtic was exempted from military service due to poor eyesight, and during his arrest, the front door was broken with a mallet. Dragan Cvetkovic is 90% disabled, previously wounded by Albanians, and the father of a local priest. Dragan Nicic is a retired teacher, and Milos Sosic was the first member of the Kosovo Police Service in Kosovsko Pomoravlje, meaning he passed all security checks over 20 years ago,“ the statement read.

Additionally, the statement mentioned that Nenad Stojanovic was once a member of the Kosovo Security Force, having undergone thorough security checks, and has lived a reclusive life in his village since leaving the KSF.