Leader of Civic Initiative, Freedom, Democracy, Justice Oliver Ivanovic was murdered on this day, one year ago in front of his party premises in Mitrovica North, Serbian media report.
Organizers of the murder and his assassins have not been found yet. The results of the investigation were not published, although official Belgrade promised to deliver the first information two weeks after the murder.
The photographs of Oliver Ivanovic’s body on the pavement outside his party offices are authentic and were taken minutes after the assassination, Kosovo Special Prosecutor Sul Hoxha told N1 on Tuesday.
Initial reports after the January 2018 assassination said that the security cameras on the building, where Ivanovic’s party office was located, were not operating at the time but Hoxha said that the images were taken from video recorded a minute or two later.
Serbian Ministry of Interior (MUP) said emails have been sent allegedly from Serbian state authorities' addresses, regarding the murder of Oliver Ivanovic, BETA news agency reports. The messages contain malicious and inaccurate claims, the MUP added in a press statement issued today.
"The police have informed the Special Prosecutor for High-Tech Crime about this, and the investigation so far has shown that this is a case of so-called 'spoofing' aimed at obtaining personal, financial and other confidential information about the recipients," the MUP noted.
A mural of the murdered Kosovo Serb leader Oliver Ivanovic has been painted on a wall in Belgrade, not far from the city’s main police station, TV N1 reports.
An unidentified artist painted a portrait of Ivanovic and wrote inscription “You Can’t Live in an Atmosphere of Fear”.
The mural was painted just prior to the first anniversary of the murder of Ivanovic. He was gunned down in front of his party offices in Mitrovica North on 16 January 2018.
A protest gathering has been scheduled to take place tomorrow in central Belgrade to mark the anniversary.
One year after murder of leader of Civic Initiative, Freedom, Democracy, Justice (GI SDP) Oliver Ivanovic, his associates, family, and the public, are still denied the information regarding the investigation, and are without an answer to the question of who the perpetrators and those who ordered the killing are.
Aleksandar Vucic has commented on the insults made at the expense of Milena Ivanovic, to say that he "never understood that kind of insanity and hatred."
The president reacted after one of the leaders of the opposition Alliance for Serbia, Zeljko Veselinovic, referred to the widow of Oliver Ivanovic, a Serb politician from Kosovo who was gunned down in Mitrovica North a year ago, as a "she devil."
In a tweet that has since been removed, Veselinovic said Milena Ivanovic was frequenting nightclubs in the capital and missed her late husband's one-year memorial service.
Kosovo Serb opposition leader Oliver Ivanovic never received a direct threat, nor he thought he was in jeopardy, his wife Milena Popovic-Ivanovic said for Serbian media a year after this politician was murdered in front of his party’s office in North Mitrovica last year.
Speaking for Belgrade daily newspaper Politika, Ivanovic denied allegations of her late husband delivering the names of people threatening his safety to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.
Milorad Ivanovic, the brother of the assassinated Kosovo Serb leader Oliver Ivanovic, told N1 that his family was left alone and knew only what media reported and the officials were saying. He added the life without information was difficult.
Oliver Ivanovic, the leader of the Civil Initiative SDP, a party which does not enjoy Belgrade's support, was gunned down on January 16 last year outside his organisation's headquarters.
The annual memorial service for Oliver Ivanovic will be held at the New Cemetery in Belgrade on January 12th, starting at 11:00 am, the Civic Initiative Freedom, Democracy, Justice (GI SDP) announced, KoSSev portal reports.
Furthermore, the members of the party, family, friends, and supporters would gather, as they have been doing every month since his assassination, in front of GI SDP premises in Mitrovica North, on 16 January 2019, at 10:00.
Oliver Ivanovic’s wife, Milena Popovic called on the Kosovo Special Prosecutor, Syle Hoxha to come to Belgrade with his “entire team“ and together with the Serbian investigative authorities to “question her for the fourth time,” KoSSev portal reports.