New probe into crimes in four villages in Kosovo

Zivanovic is suspected of failing to take necessary measures and prevent the killing of at least 118 Albanian civilians and the inflicting of grievous bodily harm to 13 civilians, although he knew that attacks will be carried out on the residents of the villages of Cuska, Pavljan, Ljubenic and Zahac.He is also suspected of failing to prevent the destruction of 40 houses, plundering, forceful dislocation, seizure and destruction of the victims' personal documents, the war crimes prosecution at the High Court in Belgrade stated.The prosecutor is of the opinion that Gen. Zivanovic knew that, while acting on the order and conducting a raid and clearing the villages of Ljubenic, Pavljan, Cuska and Zahac, members of the 177th Yugoslav Army Squad in Pec will attack the civilian population of Albanian nationality, that they will kill, injure, displace them and destroy their property.Gen. Zivanovic was superior to Toplica Miladinovic, Milojko Nikolic and Dejan Bulatovic who were sentenced to the maximum imprisonment of 20 years for war crimes in the municipality of Pec in the first-instance proceedings in the Cuska case, while nine members of the 177th Yugoslav Army Squad faced 106 years in prison in total.The judgment confirmed the prosecution's allegations that the mass killings were conducted in the presence of women and children, the youngest victim being just 19, and the oldest 87 years old.Under the judgment, in the killings, rapes, destruction of property and other crimes, the convicts demonstrated extreme ruthlessness, cruelty and removed the evidence by burning the bodies of the civilian victims in order to ensure that the crimes are not discovered, and the victims not identified.