\n The trial in Pristina over an alleged secession attempt in northern Kosovo entered its final phase Monday, with the defence rejecting charges against three Serbs accused of \"terrorist acts\".\n<\/p>\n
\n In September 2023, a group of dozens of heavily armed men led by Serb Milan Radoicic killed a police officer before taking refuge in the Banjska Monastery, exchanging heavy gunfire with police and later fleeing to Serbia.\n<\/p>\n
\n Three attackers were also killed during the day-long standoff.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"There is no evidence the accused intended to commit the acts they are charged with,\" defence lawyer Ljubomir Pantovic told the court, rejecting prosecutors' claims that the accused planned to secede northern Kosovo and unite it with Serbia.\n<\/p>\n
\n Another defence lawyer, Milos Delevic, complained of \"a pre-created atmosphere that the accused are already guilty\".\n<\/p>\n
\n \"You cannot pass a verdict other than acquittal,\" concluded lawyer Jovana Filipovic.\n<\/p>\n
\n Prosecutors have previously asked for life sentences for all the accused.\n<\/p>\n
\n The court will announce the verdict on April 24.\n<\/p>\n
\n The trial began in 2025 but restarted in mid-January after proceedings were split between those in court and suspects still on the run.\n<\/p>\n
\n A total of 45 Serbs were charged, including Radoicic, but only three are before the court, which has refused to try the others in absentia.\n<\/p>\n
\n The remaining suspects are believed to be in Serbia, with proceedings on hold as they are subject to international arrest warrants.\n<\/p>\n
\n Radoicic, a former vice-president of the Serb List -- Kosovo's main Serb party -- admitted to Belgrade authorities that he led the attack, but it remains unclear if he is under investigation in Serbia, where he must report regularly to police.\n<\/p>\n
\n He also faces an outstanding warrant over alleged war crimes during Kosovo's 1990s conflict.\n<\/p>\n
\n The 1998-1999 Kosovo war between independence-seeking guerrillas and Serbian forces ended after a NATO air campaign drove Serbian forces from the territory.\n<\/p>\n
\n Tensions between Kosovo and Serbia have remained high since the war, which killed around 13,000 people. Pristina declared independence in 2008, a move Belgrade refuses to recognise.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The trial in Pristina over an alleged secession attempt in northern Kosovo entered its final phase Monday, with the defence rejecting charges against three Serbs accused of \"terrorist acts\". In September 2023, a group of dozens of heavily armed men led by Serb Milan Radoicic killed a police officer before taking refuge in the Banjska […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[553],"tags":[],"ji_location":[],"class_list":["post-158189","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-live-feed"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n