RADANOVIĆ: DESECRATION OF CATHEDRAL CHURCH IN TUZLA PART OF ORGANIZED CAMPAIGN AGAINST SERBS

SARAJEVO, JULY 18 /SRNA/ - The president of the Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Serbs in the Federation of BiH /FBiH/ Đorđe Radanović believes that desecration of the Cathedral Church of Assumption of the Most Holy Mother of God in Tuzla this morning is part of an organized campaign targeting Serbs in the FBiH, where Bosniaks make up the majority population, and that it sends a message that the Serb people are not welcome.

Radanović stated that this represents a serious and coordinated activity in areas with a Muslim majority - Sarajevo, Tuzla, and Mostar - where churches, monuments, and clergy are being attacked.

"No one should be under the illusion or impression that these are random, isolated incidents of juvenile delinquency, as the federal authorities, the Prosecutor's Office, and the Ministries of Internal Affairs are portraying them," Radanović told SRNA.

According to him, these acts send a clear message to Serbs that they should not come even for All Souls' Day, Christmas, or other holidays, nor should they repair their churches.

"They are telling us - don’t ever come. Not through official acts or written documents, but through their actions. How is it possible that for 30 years, crosses have been smashed, churches burned and looted - and it's always, supposedly, a random minor, someone mentally ill, or some other excuse?" Radanović said.

He emphasized that this is an organized campaign and that Serbs must understand they are not liked in the territory of the FBiH.

"It's not that they don't like us — they hate us. They hate Orthodoxy, the clergy of the Serbian Orthodox Church, and the Cyrillic script. They hate all of us," Radanović added.

Priest Miloš Trišić told SRNA that unknown perpetrators desecrated the Cathedral Church of the Assumption of the Most Holy Mother of God in Tuzla this morning, damaged the reliquary of Saint Blessed Matrona of Moscow, broke into the church shop, and stole donated money.

Two unidentified individuals entered the church this morning under the pretense of praying, but committed burglary and fled.