Serbs who were detained today after the commemoration of Vidovdan at Gazimestan have been released from detention and misdemeanor, rather than criminal, proceedings will be conducted against them, lawyer Jovana Filipović confirmed for Euronews Serbia.
According to her words, a total of 36 people are included in the proceedings, while one person is a minor.
“It is a misdemeanor, not a criminal proceeding. Everyone’s personal documents were confiscated as a security measure that they will appear in court. Everyone is free. The hearing will be tomorrow at 1 p.m. There are 36 of them in total,” said Filipović.
During the day, the so-called Kosovo Police announced that after the commemoration of Vidovdan at Gazimestan, they detained dozens of people, stating that they were detained due to, as they claim, disturbance of public order and peace and “provocative behavior”.
The detentions caused numerous reactions from officials in Belgrade. The Office for Kosovo and Metohija assessed that this was a “shameful and unprecedented act of repression”, demanded the immediate release of the detainees, and announced that it would inform international representatives about the case.
Representatives of the Serb List also condemned the detentions, and the vice president of the Serb List, Dalibor Jevtić, sent a letter to the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, warning of, as he stated, repression and violation of the rights of the Serbian community in Kosovo during the commemoration of Vidovdan.
Among those arrested are persons from Kosovo and Metohija and from central Serbia. The Kosovo police detained them after the memorial service for the Kosovo heroes which was served today at Gazimestan.
At the entrance to the memorial complex, a large number of members of the so-called Kosovo police in uniform and civilian clothes searched the believers and treated them harshly.
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Source: Euronews Srbija Photo: ATA Images