Hundreds of citizens have gathered in front of the Kosovo Police station in North Mitrovica, protesting the arrest of four young men of Serbian ethnicity. The demonstration, announced by the Serbian Democracy party, is demanding the immediate release of the detainees, who were arrested late Monday night for allegedly insulting and attacking police officers.
Since 10:00 AM, hundreds of citizens have gathered outside the police station in North Mitrovica. Serbian Democracy leaders Aleksandar Arsenijević and Stefan Veljković joined the crowd of protesters, distributing whistles to the demonstrators, who have been using them to voice their dissatisfaction.
Among the protesters are also family members of the arrested, the head of Srpska Lista, Zlatan Elek, as well as members of various non-governmental organizations, holding signs that read, “Kurtiland Police,” “Free Our Children!,” and “Return Our Children!” Another banner, written in English, questions, “Is the EU concerned?”
Shortly after the arrests, allegations surfaced that the young men were beaten before and during their detention. Miloš Delević, one of the defense lawyers, confirmed that at least one of the detainees had been assaulted by police officers, who also noted discrepancies between the police report and his client’s account of how the incident leading to the arrests even began.
Initially, it was announced that the four men would not be brought to the northern station for questioning due to the ongoing protests.
However, in a recent development following a brief conversation between Aleksandar Arsenijević and Veton Elshani, deputy commander of the Kosovo Police for the northern region, it was confirmed that the detainees will be brought before the court in North Mitrovica around 2:00 PM for questioning.
Arsenijević relayed this information to the gathered citizens and urged them to cooperate with the police to ensure the questioning can proceed smoothly.
He requested that the crowd follow police instructions and clear the space when necessary, while also calling for calm and peaceful behavior as the situation unfolds.
The arrested men are expected to be brought to the north part of the town any moment now.
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Preuzimanje i objavljivanje tekstova sa portala KoSSev nije dozvoljeno bez navođenja izvora. Hvala na poštovanju etike novinarske profesije.
