Serbian Nationalist Movement Calls for Arrest of Former KLA Fighters

A nationalist organization in Serbia has publicly called for the arrest of former members of the Kosovo Liberation Army. Alongside this call, it published lists containing the names and personal details of individuals it claims served in KLA brigades.

The Serbian movement “Heart of Heroes,” which is headquartered in Kraljevo, issued a statement on July 18 addressed to Serbia’s War Crimes Prosecutor’s Office and the War Crimes Department in Belgrade. It called on these institutions to review the lists and, based on the organization’s claims, determine the criminal liability of the individuals included.

The lists published along with the statement contain the names and dates of birth of individuals identified as former members of the Kosovo Liberation Army’s 111th Brigade and 121st Brigade.

The nationalist organization also called for the materials to be sent to police authorities in European Union countries so that measures could be taken to arrest the listed individuals outside Serbian territory as well.

This initiative comes as Serbian authorities continue to detain Albanians at border crossings over alleged suspicions of war crimes.

Hysni Gucati, chairman of the KLA Veterans’ Organization, responded to the developments. In a statement to RTK, he urged his former comrades not to travel through Serbia, saying this is a reality that the Serbian state could use against them at any time.

Gucati said that an organization had recently called for the arrest of KLA veterans in Serbia and beyond, including individuals who belonged to these two brigades.

Both the KLA War Veterans’ Organization and the “Octopus” Institute view such actions as part of an organized strategy against Kosovo and former members of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

Gurakuq Kuçi of the “Octopus” Institute said that while Kosovo is addressing war crimes and the crimes Serbia committed in Kosovo, the Serbian side is constantly trying to create a counterweight through false accusations. According to him, lists of KLA soldiers who took part in the war are being used for this purpose, with those soldiers being accused of being criminals, while various actions of a state-sponsored nature are also being undertaken.

The most recent case involving an arrest by Serbian authorities at a border crossing with Kosovo on suspicion of war crimes was that of Osman Selmani. He was detained on July 1 at the Mutivoda border crossing while returning to his birthplace. The High Court in Serbia ordered him held in pretrial detention for 30 days.