Serbian police seal off village to prevent far-right rally

By: The Associated Press

Sunday, May 6, 2018 5:05 AM

JARAK, Serbia (AP) Serbian police have prevented a Serbian far-right leader convicted of war crimes from returning to an ethnically-mixed northern village where he spurred ethnic hatred during the 1990s' Balkan war.

Dozens of policemen sealed off Hrtkovci on Sunday, blocking Serbian Radical Party leader Vojislav Seselj and his supporters from reaching the village and rallying there.

The Radicals briefly gathered by the police cordons before dispersing. A squabble was reported with some liberal protesters who came to denounce Seselj.

The U.N. war crimes court for the former Yugoslavia last month sentenced Seselj to ten years in prison over his 1992 speech in Hrtkovci that resulted in the deportations of dozens of ethnic Croats from the village.

Seselj remains free because he served his sentence while in custody during the trial.

Serbian police seal off village to prevent far-right rally

Serbian Radical Party leader Vojislav Seselj sits on the road in front of a police cordon, in the village of Jarak, Serbia, Sunday, May 6, 2018. Police have prevented a far-right leader Seselj, from holding a rally in an ethnically-mixed village where his nationalist speeches spurred ethnic hatred during the 1990s' Balkan conflict.(AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

The Associated Press

Serbian Radical Party leader Vojislav Seselj waves to supporters in the village of Jarak, Serbia, Sunday, May 6, 2018. Serbian police have prevented a far-right leader Seselj, from holding a rally in an ethnically-mixed village where his nationalist speeches spurred ethnic hatred during the 1990s' Balkan conflict.(AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

The Associated Press

Serbian police officers block a road to stop Serbian Radical Party leader Vojislav Seselj and his supporters from reaching the northern village of Hrtkovci, in Jarak, Serbia, Sunday, May 6, 2018. Serbian police have prevented a far-right leader Seselj, from holding a rally in an ethnically-mixed village where his nationalist speeches spurred ethnic hatred during the 1990s' Balkan conflict. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

The Associated Press

Supporters of Serbian Radical Party leader Vojislav Seselj pose with the Serbian flags that show a photo of Seselj, in front of a police cordon, in the village of Jarak, Serbia, Sunday, May 6, 2018. Serbian police have prevented a far-right leader Seselj, from holding a rally in an ethnically-mixed village where his nationalist speeches spurred ethnic hatred during the 1990s' Balkan conflict. Serbian Cyrillic letters on flag read "Greater Serbia". (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

The Associated Press