Serbian Prosecutor’s Office Gathers Evidence Following Detention of War Crimes Suspect in Kosovo

Serbia’s War Crimes Prosecutor’s Office told Radio Free Europe (RFE) that it is verifying the circumstances and conducting investigative actions related to the arrest of M.M., who is suspected of committing war crimes against the civilian population in Kosovo in 1999.

The arrest took place on August 1 at around 10:30 p.m. at the border crossing between Serbia and Hungary, according to Kosovo lawyer Arianit Koci. He said on Facebook that the detainee was Kosovo citizen Mentor Mustafa, 44, from the village of Jasenovik in the municipality of Novo Brdo.

According to Koci, Mustafa was traveling by bus from Stuttgart to Kosovo with his brother, Fejzullah Mustafa. The lawyer added that, based on the testimony of the brother, who was at the scene, Serbian authorities had linked the detention to a damaged identity card.

Serbia’s Interior Ministry announced on August 2 that an arrest had been made at the Horgoš border crossing between Serbia and Hungary. The statement said the person was suspected of committing a war crime against two civilians in the village of Klobukar, near Novo Brdo in Kosovo, in July 1999.

Serbia’s Interior Ministry did not disclose the detainee’s identity or citizenship, stating only that he was born in 1981.

In its response to RFE, Serbia’s War Crimes Prosecutor’s Office explained that the criminal proceedings are at a non-public stage. For this reason, the institution said it could not currently provide specific details about the case.

Kosovo’s institutions have not yet provided any information regarding the matter.

In recent years, Serbia has repeatedly detained Kosovo citizens suspected of committing war crimes in Kosovo during 1998-’99.

In Kosovo, dozens of Serbs have also been arrested in recent years on suspicion of war crimes, while some of these cases have resulted in convictions.