Acting President of the country Albulena Haxhiu (Albulena Hadžiu) announced that a potential mass grave was found over the weekend and it is believed that victims of the 1990s Kosovo war are also buried there.
“Suspicions about the second mass grave are a chilling reminder of the crimes committed during the war and proof that justice has not yet been fully served,” A. Haxhiu wrote on the social network Facebook.
The police and prosecutors stated in their announcement that they are currently seeking court permission to begin excavations at the second site, located just 10 kilometers from the first site in the village of Jabuka.
The war between ethnic Albanian partisans seeking independence and Serbian armed forces from 1998 to 1999 claimed about 13,000 lives, and another 4,000 people remain missing.
Thousands of remains have been found during decades of mass grave searches, but 1,600 individuals are still considered missing.
Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla (Dželalis Svečla) said that excavations continue at the primary site in the Zubin Potok district, where officials believe up to 23 people may be buried.
Prime Minister Albin Kurti visited the site on Saturday and stated that he believes the individuals buried there were “forcibly abducted and killed” in the spring of 1999.
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Forensic experts confirmed that the remains of seven people were found on Saturday. A. Kurti previously said he believes they are “intellectuals from Mitrovica, doctors, professors, and human rights activists” who disappeared on April 19, 1999.
Prosecutors have not yet confirmed the identities of the deceased or their connection to the Kosovo war and warned that the identification process may take several months.
However, the police have recently detained three local residents suspected of war crimes, the prosecution reported.
The search for people missing during the war is slow because tensions between Belgrade, which does not recognize Kosovo’s independence, and Pristina remain high.
Although both countries agreed on a joint commission to accelerate the search for the missing, there are currently no signs of improved cooperation.
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