The European Union has stated that Serbia’s recent arrest of a veteran of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) constitutes “another violation” of Serbia’s obligations under the 2015 Dialogue and Justice Agreement.

“Under this agreement, Serbia committed not to initiate criminal investigations or prosecutions for crimes allegedly committed in Kosovo, unless such action is requested by Kosovo authorities. Jurisdiction over allegations of war crimes and other serious offenses lies with Kosovo institutions. We call on Serbia to respect its commitments,” a spokesperson for the European Commission told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

On February 5, Serbian authorities arrested Mitehat Llozhani upon his entry into Serbian territory from the border with Croatia. According to the authorities, he is suspected in Belgrade of crimes against the civilian population.

Kosovo’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora has called for the engagement of the international community regarding this case.

According to Serbia, the arrested individual is suspected of having undergone training as a member of the KLA’s Dukagjin Operational Zone in 1998 and 1999, “after which he allegedly took part in terrorist attacks against members of the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Yugoslav Army.” The statement also claims that “as a member of a group commanded by Ramush Haradinaj, he participated in the kidnapping and massacre of police officers.”

However, the Kosovo Liberation Army War Veterans’ Organization told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that the arrested man participated in several training sessions in Albania, but there is no information indicating that he was on the front lines in Kosovo.

The deputy chairman of the veterans’ organization, Gazmend Syla, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that Llozhani was found to have his veteran identification card in his pocket during the search conducted by Serbian authorities.