Bosnian Serbs show solidarity with provocations against Muslims

BELGRADE, Serbia

Bosnian Serbs gathered on Sunday evening in front of the police station in Srebrenica to show their solidarity with two local Serbs detained for alleged provocation against Muslims.

The Bosnian Serbs were detained on Sunday on the grounds that they shot at a Muslim Bosnian in Potocari, near Srebrenica, while passing by his house.

The demonstration was held at the call of Serbian Orthodox Church Priest Aleksandar Mladjenovic, who works in the region.

Srebrenica Mayor Mladen Grujicic and his deputy Momcilo Cvijetinovic also attended the gathering.

"We came here to condemn the pressure on the Republika Srpska police," Grujicic said in a statement, referring to one of the two entities that make up Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the part of the country where Srebrenica is located. Srebrenica is well known for being divided in terms of religion between Orthodox Christians and Muslims.

"Our young people were detained for no reason on charges of disturbing public order and peace, which they did not do at all. This is the continuation of the violation of religious freedom and rights of the Serbian people in Srebrenica," said Grujicic.

Some ethnic Serbian groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina on Christmas Day, which was observed by Orthodox Christians over the weekend, tried to incite Muslims in the country by carrying out anti-Islamic actions.

Ultranationalist Serbian groups organized a vehicle convoy and shouted insults at Muslims in Srebrenica.

While the convoy was passing by the house of a Muslim citizen in Potocari, near Srebrenica, gunfire was opened.

Security camera footage of the house owner showed that the fire was opened from a convoy moving under the control of the Republika Srpska police.

Police said earlier that two people were detained on suspicion of being involved in the incident.

Another provocative event took place in the nearby town of Vlasenica, and police launched investigations.

Bosnian ultranationalist Serbs committed similar provocations in the previous years by for instance throwing parts of slaughtered pigs in front of the Srebrebica genocide memorial cemetery, where victims of the 1995 genocide are buried.