The family of killed Serbian politician Oliver Ivanovic is leaving Kosovska Mitrovica and moving house to relatives’ in Belgrade, the late politician’s brother, Miroslav Ivanovic told Serbian daily Telegraf on Wednesday.
The decision to bury Ivanovic in Belgrade was taken within the family, he said.
“Our parents are buried in Podgorica after their wish. On this occasion, after the murder of Oliver, we sat down and we talked within our family. Since our family will be in Belgrade, and some already live there, it is easy to see where the desire came from, to keep him close to us, so we can visit his grave,” the late politician’s brother was quoted by Telegraf.
According to Miroslav Ivanovic, Belgrade offered to bury Kosovo Serbs’ leader in the Alley of Meritorious Citizens and the proposal has weighed on the family’s decision.
Oliver Ivanovic, a leader of Kosovan Serbs and the head of the ‘Freedom, Democracy, Truth’ party, was gunned down on Tuesday morning while entering his party headquarters in Kosovska Mitrovica. Ivanovic was rushed to hospital with six gunshot wounds in the chest, where he succumbed to his injuries.
Representatives of international missions to Kosovo condemned Ivanovic’s murder and demanded bringing those responsible to justice as soon as possible. Russia said that the situation could bring about the atmosphere of terror and give rise to inter-ethnic conflicts in the region.