Investigation into Mass Graves in Serbia: Progress ‌and ⁤Challenges

“I ‌think⁣ by mid-September we should have a date to start digging or assessing the site,” said Kushtrim Gara of the Kosovo Commission for the Missing.

The landfill site near the village of Kožlje in south-west Serbia is one of the locations which, according to the authorities in Pristina, could hide the ‍crimes committed by Serbian forces against Albanian‍ civilians in Kosovo during the war in 1990s.

The Commission for the Lost Government of Serbia confirmed that preparations have begun to clear the site and ⁢build an access road,⁢ after‍ which there is an⁢ intention to search the “Golo Brdo” landfill site.

The excavations will be carried out at the request of Kosovo, which gave‌ information⁣ to the Serbian side about the possibility that the remains of murdered Albanian civilians, who have​ been missing for more than two decades, are buried in this place.

Progress after the Deadline in the Investigations?

The investigation into the location near Novi Pazar was agreed by the Working Groups for Missing ‍Persons of Kosovo​ and Serbia at meetings in Geneva at the end of January and beginning of‍ July 2024.

Kuštrim Gara of the Kosovo Commission for the Missing said that Pristina proposed in the meetings to investigate about 20 locations in Serbia that are ⁤suspected to be mass or individual​ graves of those who disappeared during the war.

Continuation of Joint Charges

Both sides exchanged accusations even after announcing ​that they were looking for a new location in Serbia.

Serbian ‍Prime Minister Miloš Vučević said on September 3 in Novi Pazar that Belgrade is ready to investigate everywhere, and that Pristina is responsible for the lack of progress in the search for ​the missing.

What has Serbia Done So Far?

The last excavations in Serbia took place in 2022 at the Štavalj mine site near Sjenica in the southwest‍ of the ‌country.

No remains were found at this site or at the Kozarevo near Novi Pazar locations, according to the Belgrade Commission⁣ for the Missing.

Kosovo is Asking for New Searches of⁢ the Discovered Graves

At the meetings in Geneva, the Kosovo delegation asked for a re-investigation ⁢of the locations where mass graves were found​ in ⁤the early 2000s – in ⁤Batajnica, Petrovo Selo and Perućac.

“For us, ⁣the location in Batajnica remains a high priority. Based on the analysis we have done and on the basis of the satellite images we have already provided, we​ encourage a return ​to this location due to the possibility of finding more than 50​ victims of the ⁢war and exhumed”, said Kuštrim Gara.

Are War Archives Being Opened?

Kosovo is also asking Serbia to open the archives of army and police units responsible for crimes against ​the ​Albanian population.

Kuštrim​ Gara of the Kosovo Commission says that these data would help to identify the places to investigate because of the suspicion that there have been interventions and work on them in the last 25 years.

What ⁤Does the Declaration on the Lost Enforce?

The Serbian Government Commission ‌notes that Belgrade, at the ​meeting in ⁤Geneva, proposed the formation of a special group that would deal with the archives of domestic institutions “while respecting data​ confidentiality measures”.

Kosovo and Serbia committed themselves to full access to information, including those with confidential status, with the ‌Declaration on Missing‌ Persons, agreed in May 2023, as part of the dialogue on the ‍normalization of relations mediated ⁤by the European Union (EU).

Who ‌Was Responsible⁢ for Moving the Body?

Vlastimir Đorđević, former head of the Public‌ Security Department of the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs, was sentenced to 27 years​ in prison for crimes in Kosovo,⁢ including moving bodies and burying them in secret ‌graves in The Hague.

The verdict states that the transport was carried‌ out as⁢ part of a coordinated operation to eliminate evidence of crimes committed by Serbian forces against Kosovo Albanians.