BELGRADE: CITIZENS GO ON PROTEST MARCH, ATTEND SERVICE FOR KOSOVO VICTIMS

ZAGREB, March 19 (Hina) - Several thousand citizens on Friday joined state officials and religious dignitaries for a protest walk from the building of the Serbian government to the Church of St. Sava, where the head of the Serb Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Amfilohije, conducted a service for the victims of the latest incidents in Kosovo.#L# Heading the protest march were Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica and government members and representatives of the Serb Orthodox Church and the Islamic community. The defence minister of Serbia and Montenegro, Boris Tadic, joined the protesters in the prayer at St. Sava's Church. High school students, who walked out of school classes, accounted for the largest number of protesters. The protest walk was also attended by members of the Association of Families of Missing and Abducted Kosovo Serbs, who carried banners with the names of the missing. At the start of the walk, the protesters gathered in front of the government building, chanting "Kosovo is Serbia", "Let's go to Kosovo", "Kosovo is the heart of Serbia", "Protect the holy buildings", calling for the murder of Kosovo Albanians, and carrying banners which read "Peace for all, freedom for all, return for all". Addressing the protesters, Metropolitan Amfilohije accused the international community of being responsible for the radical decrease of the Kosovo Serb population and called on the protesters not to attack other religious communities' places of worship or the Serbian police. This morning, a group of Belgrade high school students tried to reach the Albanian Embassy in the residential area of Dedinje, but they were prevented by strong police forces like yesterday. Protest meetings were held today in other Serbian cities as well. (Hina) rml sb