The U.S. State Department published reports on Religious Freedoms in various countries around the world at the end of last month, including Kosovo.
In the report on Kosovo, the attack in Banjskë against the Kosovo Police by an armed Serbian group, which was later claimed by Kosovo Serb politician Milan Radoičić, who was declared a terrorist by Kosovo institutions, is included.
The State Department notes that Serbian authorities arrested Radoičić on October 3 and released him on October 4, “pending investigations.”
“On September 24, an organized, armed, and trained group of ethnic Serbs attacked the Kosovo Police in the village of Banjskë, Zvečan municipality, killing one police sergeant and wounding two other officers. The group then forcibly entered the nearby Banjskë Monastery complex and fought with the police for several hours, including from the monastery grounds, while the abbot of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) and about 40 pilgrims from Serbia were isolated in the monastery until the group left. Police said three attackers were killed during the clash.”
“After the fighting, police and personnel from NATO Forces in Kosovo and the EU Rule of Law Mission (EULEX) entered the monastery and found SOC personnel and the pilgrims there unharmed. According to the SOC, the monastery suffered minor damage to the gates and the guesthouse door, which was outside the main monastery building.”
“At a press conference on September 29, speaking on behalf of the U.S.-sanctioned vice-president of the Serb List, Milan Radoičić, Radoičić’s lawyer stated that his client was responsible for organizing, leading, and participating in the Banjskë attack. The lawyer also announced Radoičić’s resignation as vice-president of the Serb List. Serbian authorities arrested Radoičić on October 3 and released him on October 4, pending further investigations, which continued until the end of the year,” says the State Department report on Religious Freedoms.
The report further emphasizes how the Serbian Orthodox Church condemned the attack on the Kosovo police and complained about public statements by Kosovo government officials, public figures, and the media “claiming that the SOC was complicit in the attack.”
“For example, Interior Minister Xhelal Sveçla told the media in September that there were ‘indications of direct involvement’ of monastery staff in the action.”
“On September 25, the SOC said that ‘neither EULEX nor the police found anything that could compromise the monastery’ and stated that ‘firearms, body armor, and pieces of equipment’ discovered after the attack ‘were thrown by the armed persons as they withdrew from the monastery.'”
“The police separately reported that a large quantity of weapons and vehicles were found ‘in and around the monastery,’ including rocket launchers, mortar shells, grenades, explosives, and small arms. In October, despite SOC’s denial, Minister Sveçla told the media that he would not be surprised if the monastery played a role in the attack because ‘the Serbian Orthodox Church has always played a destructive role towards peace in the region and has been part of Serbia’s hegemonic policy.'”
The State Department said that until the end of the year, the government’s investigation into the incident continued.
The report also mentions a letter from Minister Hajrulla Çeku to the SOC, offering to repair damages at the Banjskë Monastery.
“The letter mentioned the government’s constitutional obligation to protect and promote religious cultural heritage without discrimination. In response, the SOC said it ‘cannot accept the interference of Kosovo institutions in our church life and the assumption of the protection of the Banjskë Monastery.'”
“The letter mentioned the government’s constitutional obligation to protect and promote religious cultural heritage without discrimination. In response, the SOC said it ‘cannot accept the interference of Kosovo institutions in our church life and the assumption of the protection of the Banjskë Monastery.'”
“The SOC said that the government’s offer was a ‘political act’ intended to place ‘religious and cultural heritage…under the political control of Kosovo institutions’ and also ‘to degrade our fundamental religious freedoms and rights and the cultural appropriation of our churches and monasteries.’ The SOC stated that it would repair the monastery (which had suffered minor damages) with its own resources.”
“In October, in response to media reports that SOC’s independent repairs of the monastery violated the law (because they were not authorized by the government Institute for Protection of Monuments), the SOC said that the ‘Ahtisaari Plan (which provided the basis for Kosovo’s independence and regulated the creation of Kosovo’s legal framework) states that SOC should have ‘full discretion over the management, reconstruction, and access to its properties.'”
The report, covering events of 2023, also mentions cases where the exercise of religious freedoms in Kosovo was obstructed.
Additionally, it notes the rejecting statements by state leaders during the past year regarding the ownership of about 26 hectares of land for the Deçan Monastery.
“In March, the government submitted proposals to the national legislature for amendments to the law on religious freedom that would allow religious groups to gain legal status; the Assembly (the national legislature) took no action on them during the year. In May, the police again prevented Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) clerics from holding a service at the disputed Church of Christ the Savior in Pristina. Some schools continued to deny access to Muslim girls wearing hijabs, citing government regulations. Municipal and central government officials again failed to enforce previous Constitutional Court and Supreme Court decisions recognizing the ownership of land near the Deçan Monastery by the SOC. In May, President Vjosa Osmani stated that enforcing previous court decisions regarding the disputed monastery property ‘could create an extremely dangerous precedent.’ In October, the government deported an SOC cleric to North Macedonia for unspecified violations of the Law on Foreigners. The SOC said the deportation was a ‘brutal, arbitrary, and extrajudicial expulsion.’ In July, Prime Minister Albin Kurti posted on social media that Serbia was using ambulances to ‘smuggle weapons into Orthodox churches in Kosovo.’ The SOC said Kurti’s statements ‘openly incited ethnic and religious intolerance,'” the State Department report on religious freedoms in Kosovo stated.
Further, it mentions the February 2023 incident where “four individuals prevented an imam from performing religious rites at the mosque in Halabak, Podujeva municipality, and assaulted a congregation member.”
“In April, a group of unidentified individuals assaulted the imam of the village of Miradi e Epërme in Fushë Kosovë after daily prayers. Jewish community representatives noted a significant increase in anti-Semitic language on social media following the Hamas attack in Israel in October, but the community leader said that ‘fake news’ was sometimes the cause. The SOC stated that some incidents targeting its property, including one during Orthodox Easter celebrations, were religiously and ethnically motivated. The SOC said the police failed or were unwilling to act on criminal acts ‘with a religious or nationalist background.’ Police representatives said that all cases involving cultural or religious heritage are treated as a priority and in accordance with existing laws.”
The report also mentions the engagement of the U.S. Ambassador, Jeff Hovenier, and other embassy officials to advocate with government officials for the approval of amendments to the law on religious freedom that would allow religious groups to gain legal status.
“They also asked government officials to respect religious freedom and pluralism and to increase communication and cooperation with religious groups. The Ambassador, a senior visiting State Department official, and embassy officials met with government officials to urge them to implement Constitutional and Supreme Court decisions ordering the registration of land ownership at the Deçan Monastery. Embassy officials also asked the government to maintain the threatened Bektashi tekke (Sufi place of worship) in Prizren as a protected historic site. The embassy frequently issued messages in the press and on social media in support of religious freedom,” the report emphasized.
