Thousands of people marched in Belgrade on January 16 to mark the anniversary of the still unsolved assassination of Kosovo Serb leader Oliver Ivanovic, accusing the authorities of covering up for the perpetrators.
The silent march was organized by the Alliance for Serbia, a loose grouping of 30 opposition parties and organizations, and it took place on the eve of a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The march was the seventh such antigovernment protest since December 8.
Ivanovic, 64, was shot dead on January 16 last year as he arrived at his party office in Mitrovica, a town bitterly divided between Kosovo's majority ethnic Albanians and minority Serbs, who dominate the northern area surrounding Mitrovica.
Three Serbs were detained in connection with the assassination in November, but they have yet to be charged.
After Kosovo gained independence from Serbia in 2008, Ivanovic became known as a relative moderate in favor of dialogue and compromise with Kosovo Albanians and one of the chief interlocutors for international organizations seeking to bring stability and the rule of law.
The anniversary of Ivanovic's killing was also marked in Mitrovica by members of his family, close associates and citizens, who laid a wreath and lit candles at the spot where he was shot dead. Serbia's Trade Minister, Rasim Ljajic was also present.
