In contrast to previous years, Serbia’s War Crimes Prosecutor significantly increased the number of indictments in 2024.
The majority of these charges target Kosovo Albanians, and according to the Humanitarian Law Center (HLC), this trend is largely driven by political pressure from Serbian authorities and pro-government media.
Although Serbia continued arresting Kosovo citizens at border crossings in 2024, most indictments were issued against individuals who are not accessible to the Serbian judicial system.
Instead of improving cooperation with Kosovo, the HLC notes that Serbia is increasingly resorting to trials in absentia.
The year 2024 was also marked by a lack of cooperation with neighboring countries, delays in war crimes trials from the 1990s, disproportionate sentencing for convicted individuals, and the ongoing failure to prosecute senior members of Serbian security forces.
During this year, the public glorification of convicted war criminals continued, alongside the launch of a state-sponsored campaign denying the Srebrenica genocide.