Wrote: Festim Rizanaj
The Serbian-language news portal “Kosovo-online.com” uses cartoons as a form of expressing its editorial positions. Through these illustrations, the portal addresses and comments on current developments, highlighting the perspectives and narratives it represents.
On December 13, 2024, the Serbian-language information portal "Kosovo-online.com" published an cartoon where a person is shown taking a selfie, smiling and with his fingers in the shape of a peace symbol, in an open area where destroyed graves are seen. The person in the cartoon is illustrated with a plis, implying that this person symbolizes the Albanian. In the background are visible fallen crosses, a skull and a shovel, which create a heavy and symbolic environment. In the lower left corner is the logo of the portal “Kosovo Online”.
This cartoon was published on December 13, 2024, following the claims of the Draganac Monastery that the Serbian community cemetery in Gjilan has been damaged. The allegations were accompanied by several photos published on Instagram from Manastir.
The content of the cartoon published on the portal “Kosovo-online.com” conveys the message that the perpetrators of the damage to the cemeteries are Albanians, although no facts are provided to support this claim. Ironically, the cartoon illustrates a person, who symbolically represents this narrative, taking a selfie in an environment with destroyed cemeteries, fallen crosses and other elements that provoke visual provocations. This approach reflects the editorial stance of the portal and the use of the cartoon as a tool to strengthen this narrative, despite the lack of concrete evidence.
The cartoon reflects the narrative that Albanians are responsible for the damage to the Serbian community cemetery in Gjilan. This narrative is conveyed indirectly through provocative and ironic illustration, suggesting guilt without providing concrete facts.
Context of the event
After visiting the Serbian cemetery in Gjilan, monks from the Draganac monastery reported a "devastating" scene with "damaged monuments" and "destroyed crosses," without directing accusations against anyone.
In an Instagram post, they wrote: “Today we had the opportunity to visit the Serbian cemetery in Gjilan. The Albanian and Serbian cemeteries are located next to each other, but the view is completely different. On one side there is order, greenery and well-maintained monuments, while on the other side they are destroyed, the names have been erased and wild grass has covered everything – a weak sign of a city that once had over 15,000 Serbs. Even those who are still alive are not doing any better.”
Petar Petkovic, commenting on the Draganac Monastery post, which became news in the Serbian media, declared on the "X" platform that "since 1999, 10 thousand Serbian graves have been destroyed in Kosovo."
He added: "The same fate befell the cemeteries of Gjilan, a city ethnically cleansed by Serbs. While Pristina and Kurti are persecuting Serbs, their extremists are still not giving peace to the Serbian dead, the cemeteries have been destroyed, desecrated and riddled with bullets," alluding that this act in the Gjilan cemetery was committed by Albanians.
Kosovo Police has issued a statement regarding the claims raised by Petar Petkovic, saying that the relevant units have gone to the scene and verified the information.
Valon Osmani, information officer from the Regional Police Directorate in Gjilan, in a response to Hibrid.info, stated that "after investigations, it has been established that this is not a new injury, but a case that was identified several years ago."
Allegations of damage to Serbian cemeteries in Kosovo
The Office for Kosovo in the Serbian Government and its chief, Petar Petkovic, often try to create a narrative that emphasizes the increase in interethnic incidents in Kosovo, where Serbs are targeted. Hibrid.info has covered several cases of damage to Serbian cemeteries, interpreting them as actions committed by Albanian extremists without providing any facts, even though, according to the Kosovo Police, the perpetrators of the crime are unknown.
One such case is damage to Serbian cemeteries in Kishnica of Gracanica (December 2021), where the Office for Kosovo considers the action to be ethnically motivated, while the Kosovo Police has not provided any information about the case.
Likewise, in the case of damage to a grave in the Serbian cemetery in Kllokot (October 2022), the Office for Kosovo interprets this as an act committed by "Albanians driven by interethnic hatred", however, Kosovo Police reports state that the deceased's family members do not suspect anyone of this event.
As well as the case in South Mitrovica (November 2022), where there is no evidence to prove that this action was carried out by Albanians.