The Pristina court handed down its verdict on the Banjska attack near Mitrovica in September 2023 - one of the bloodiest incidents in the Balkans in recent years. Blagoje Spasojević and Vladimir Tolić received life imprisonment. Dušan Maksimović was sentenced to 30 years. All three deny the charges.

The attack on September 24, 2023 claimed the life of one Kosovo police officer and three Serbs - Stefan Nedelković, Bojan Mijailović, and Igor Milenković. Three police vehicles were hijacked and the attackers entrenched in the region. Milan Radoičić, named as the attack's organizer, has since fled to central Serbia - with nobody pursuing him.

The three convicted are just a fraction of 42 indicted. Maksimović claims he had an alibi - he was with friends in the village of Suvi Do. Spasojević and Tolić acknowledge being in Banjska, but dispute their responsibility. The court didn't believe them.

Belgrade has yet to respond officially. The verdict will be appealed - that's a given. But while three receive life sentences, the organizer is drinking coffee in Serbia. This is the Balkans: justice sometimes arrives, but never reaches the top.