On the anniversary of the events of March 17, 2004, commemorations were held in northern Mitrovica near the so-called “White Angel” monument, located close to the bridge over the Iber River.
The ceremony was organized by the Municipality of North Mitrovica and brought together local Serb citizens, representatives of the municipal leadership, as well as members of the Serb List. According to sources from KosovaPress, former members of Serbia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs (MUP) were also present at this commemorative event.
Among the attendees, several former members of the Kosovo Police were also observed, having resigned from their positions in 2022. The Deputy Director of the Regional Police Directorate for the North, Veton Elshani, confirmed their presence at the event.
“Our former colleagues in the Kosovo Police served until they resigned from their positions in 2022. Some of them held senior roles, such as station commander and head of operations. Among the approximately 60–70 individuals present, three or four were our former colleagues,” Elshani stated.
Today marks 22 years since the March 17, 2004 unrest, when public outrage erupted following the drowning of three Albanian children in the Iber River in the village of Çabër, in the municipality of Zubin Potok. A fourth child who survived reportedly told family members that they had been chased by dogs by Serb neighbors on the other side of the river.
This incident triggered strong reactions among Kosovo Albanian citizens, who on March 17 began protests across much of Kosovo, which later escalated into violence. According to the report of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), published on April 30, 2004, 19 people lost their lives (11 Kosovo Albanians and 8 Kosovo Serbs), while 954 others were injured during the clashes.
