Kosovo condemns building of Orthodox church at the Albanians mass grave site near Belgrade

Gazeta Express

16/05/2020 20:16

Kosovo’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned building of a Serbian Orthodox church at the site when a mass grave was discovered near Belgrade.

In 2001, just after the fall of Serbian president Slobodan Milosevic, the Serbian authorities announced the discovery in Batajnica the remains of 744 Albanians who were killed in Kosovo and their bodies were sent at a special police unit camp in Batajnica, about 15 kilometres from the centre of Belgrade, in an attempt to hide Serbian forces’ atrocities during the Kosovo war.

Kosovo’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement posted on Facebook considers that this is disdainful and deplorable act, Gazeta Express reports.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Disapora of the Republic of Kosovo condemns building of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Batajnica, near the location where the mass grave of over 700 Albanians killed in 1999 by Serbian military and police forces was found. We consider this a disdain act of Church and Serbian authorities towards Albanian victims of this genocidial act of Serbia,” the Ministry of Foreign affairs said.

Kosovo’s Foreign Ministry says that there can be no peace and reconciliation between Kosovo and Serbia until Belgrade accepts crimes committed against Albanians in Kosovo. “Instead of building a memorial plaque honouring innocent victims buried in the site when authorities tried to hide state atrocities, Serbia continues provocations with similar acts, and refuses to cooperate on solving the fate of over 1600 Albanians who went missing during the war,” the Foreign Ministry said. “There can be no peace or reconciliation between Kosovo and Serbia, as long as Serbia denies committing crimes against Albanians in Kosovo and refuses to apologise for these crimes,” Kosovo’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The 1998-1999 war killed some 13,000 people, majority of them Albanians and ended with the NATO bombing of Serbia. /GazetaExpress/