KOSOVO, November 19, 2002 (SODRP) -- Albanian Extremists Attack Two Serbian Orthodox Churches in Kosovo Church of St. Basil of Ostrog (Sv. Vasilije Ostroski) complely destroyed - Three powerful explosions in the Orthodox Cathedral of All Serbian Saints in Djurakovac GRACANICA November 17, 2002 Early this morning Albanian extremists attacked two Serbian Orthodox churches in the Pec area and caused great material damage. The ERP KIM Info Service confirmed this information this morning with UNMIK officials. At approximately 24:00 hours in the Church of All Serbian Saints in Djurakovac, some 20 kilometers east of Pec, three powerful explosions took place which completely demolished the church interior. One of the newer churches, it was built in 1998 and under constant KFOR protection until two months ago. It is located in the very center of Djurakovac next to the main road from Pec to Mitrovica.
Not far from Djurakovac, in the village of Ljubovo (located between Istok and Banja) at approximately 6:00 hours this morning the Church of St. Basil of Ostrog the Miracle Worker, built in 1939 was blown up and completely destroyed. This church was also under the constant protection of KFOR since the summer of 1999, protection which has since been discontinued. The Albanians looted this church several times. The last incident occurred on June 24 of this year when the church was broken into and an old wooden crucifix in it set on fire.
Neither of these two locations is any longer inhabited by Orthodox Serbs, who were forced to leave in June 1999. In Djurakovac immediately after the war, in the summer of 1999, the ancient Church of St. Nicholas (Sv. Nikola) dating back to the 14th century and containing precious frescoes from the 16th century was completely destroyed. After this attack the Orthodox cemetery was desecrated and a 100 year-old oak tree in it was cut down.
The Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Raska and Prizren, and Kosovo and Metohija most strongly condemned these most recent barbarian attacks by Albanian extremists on Serbian churches and demands that KFOR immediately re-establish checkpoints near all endangered Orthodox churches. It is absolutely unacceptable to conduct experiments with sacred edifices built over many years through the laborious efforts of believers. The Diocese also demands an immediate investigation and that the person who committed this crime be brought to justice.
Attacks on two churches in a single night demonstrates once again that the intentions of the Albanian extremists remain to erase the last traces of the existence of the Serb people, their culture and history in this region. It represents a serious challenge to UNMIK and KFOR, especially after last week's statement by Michael Steiner in Berlin that security in Kosovo and Metohija has improved significantly and that the UNMIK mission has achieved a great success. The recent attack on Serb pensioners in Pec, frequent desecrations of cemeteries, and these most recent attacks on churches speak eloquently in the language of fact that not even minimal security exists for Serbs in this area and that security cannot be improved by propaganda but only by decisive action against extremists and their political mentors. It is tragic that so far not one perpetrator in the destruction and desecration of more than 100 Orthodox churches since the war in Kosovo and Metohija has been found nor brought to trial. No one has been held accountable even though these crimes were committed in the presence of more than 30,000 KFOR troops before the eyes of the entire world.
Furthermore, it is a disheartening fact that not one Serbian church destroyed since 1999 has yet been restored. After persistent efforts toward the reconstruction of Zociste Monastery near Orahovac (founded in the 14th century), Bishop Artemije of Raska and Prizren in a recent conversation with German general Dieter Skodowsky received the concrete response that the Albanians do not want the monastery in Zociste to be restored and that KFOR is unable to protect restored churches which would again find themselves under attack by the extremists. This response clearly demonstrates the acceptance of the rule of terror and ethnic violence as accomplished facts which the international community apparently does not intend to change.
