2003 Goraždevac murders

Goraždevac murders
Location Goraždevac, Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija, Serbia
Date 13 August 2003
Target Kosovo Serb teenagers
Attack type
 Murder, attempted mass murder, using firearms
Deaths 2 (1 adult, 1 child)[1][2]
Non-fatal injuries
 4
Perpetrators Unknown; from Kosovo Albanian village Zahač

The Goraždevac murders occurred on 13 August 2003, when six ethnic Serbs, mostly children, were shot in the town of Goraždevac in Kosovo. The attack resulted in two deaths: one adult and one teenage child.

Location

Goraždevac is surrounded by Albanian settlements, making it a Serb enclave, and thus under protection from KFOR.

Events

Attack

In August 2003, a large group of Serb children from the Serb enclave of Goraždevac, close to Peć, gathered on the banks of the river Bistrica. As the children played and swam in the river, shots were fired from the Albanian village of Zahač.[3] 19-year-old Ivan Jovović died instantly, while 13-year-old Pantelija Dakić later died in the hospital. 11-year old Marko Bogićević and 15-year-old Bogdan Bukumirović were seriously injured, while Dragana Srbljak and Đorđe Ugrenović suffered from minor injuries.[4] The killings were reportedly timed to coincide with the return of over 200 Serb refugees into the town.[5]

Condemnation

Two days after the attack, Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Živković attended the funeral service for the two killed teens and the Serbian government declared 15 August a day of national mourning.[6] Moreover, it was immediately condemned by the UNMIK, KFOR, Kosovo Albanian officials, the EU, Russia, France and the U.S., the perpetrators were not found.[7]

Desacration of memorial

In January 2013, during a period of unrest throughout Kosovo, a memorial to the victims was attacked by vandals.[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Two Serbs die in Kosovo attack". BBC. 13 August 2003. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  2. ↑ "New Violence Feared in Kosovo After Death of 2 Serbian Youths". The New York Times. 15 August 2003. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  3. ↑ "Unsolved Crimes Add to Plight of Serbs in Kosovo". The New York Times. 15 August 2003. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  4. ↑ "UN acts over Kosovo killings". BBC. 14 August 2003. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  5. ↑ "For refugees from Kosovo, a long way back home". Christian Science Monitor. 5 November 2003. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  6. ↑ "Serbian PM mourns youths". BBC. 15 August 2003. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  7. ↑ "Serbs in Kosovo mark 9 years since murder of teens". B92. Beta/Tanjug. 13 August 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2015.
  8. ↑ "Serb cemeteries, memorials desecrated in Kosovo". B92. Beta/Tanjug. 21 January 2013. Retrieved 11 January 2015.


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