Serbian opposition calls for clarification of Serbia's role in Banjska

During the first session of the autumn session, a part of opposition deputies in Serbia's Parliament on 23 October raised the issue of the Serbian leadership's role in the attack on Banjska in northern Kosovo.

On 24 September, an armed group of Serbs attacked the Kosovo Police in Zvecan Banjska, killing Sergeant Africa Bulnjak. Three Serb attackers were also killed during the clashes.

Kosovo has blamed Serbia for the attack, but the latter has denied any involvement.

The responsibility for the attack on Banjska has been taken by Milan Radojic, the former deputy chairman of the Serbian List, the largest party of Serbs in Kosovo, which has Belgrade's support.

Therefore let us now ask [the director of the Agency for Security and Information BIA, Aleksandar] Vulin, [Serbia's president, Aleksandar] Vucinqiqi, and [Serbian Minister of Internal Affairs Bratislav] Gashiqi, how come you didn't know what Radovici was doing in Banjska with armed men with machine guns, rifles that no city of Serbia is allowed to hold privately”, said Nebojsa Zelenovic, co-chairman of the opposition party together, as he addressed MPs at the plenary session.

Meanwhile, the head of the Serbian Progressive Party Parliamentary Group (SNS) in power, Milenko Jovanov, retaliated, saying Zelenovic blames Serbs for everything without looking at the responsibility of the other side.

He says it is terrible that Aleksandar Vuciq knew nothing, but for him it is not terrible that three Serbs died. He never said that”, Jovanov said.

Part of the opposition in Serbia has called on 3 October for an emergency Assembly session, in which, through the formation of the Investigative Commission, the responsibility of Serbian President Aleksandar Vuciq would be determined, as well as Milan Radojic's role for events in Bankj. But such a proposal has not been accepted.

This development comes on the day Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said the attack on Banjska was carried out by Novi Sad's “Klan, led by Serbia's Defence Minister Milos Vucheviq”.

Serbia's “two decades ago ruled the Zemun Clan, and now he has taken over the Novi Sad Clan. War criminals, criminals at peace; criminals in Serbia, criminals in Kosovo. The president of the state, Aleksandar Vuciq, but as a capo-di-tutti-capi, is there to testify that although crime dictates the state, in fact, is the state that dictates crime”, Kurti wrote on Facebook Monday.

Vuchev has dismissed the statements of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti as completely disgusting and flagrantly lying.

Kosovo has called for an international investigation into Serbia to be conducted in order to determine Belgrade's role in the attack Pristina calls a terrorist.

The United States and the European Union have strongly condemned the attack and have demanded that those responsible face justice.