Jihadists in KiM signal radicalization of Islam in Balkans

BELGRADE - The growing number of Kosovo-Metohija (KiM) Albanians turning to jihad is an alarming symptom of the radicalization of Islam in the Balkans, especially in the territory of former Yugoslavia, leading Serbian Islamologist and Orientalist Darko Tanaskovic says.

The decisive role was played by the constant deterioration of social, political, economic, spiritual and moral conditions caused by the turmoil and conflicts brought on by the disintegration of Yugoslavia, he added.

"Throughout history, the Albanian-Serb conflict has always had a distinct dimension of religious hatred, particularly on the Albanian side, but only the recent separatist war and its consequences, in the context of developments in the immediate surroundings and the wider area, have led to the spreading of the extremist and, of late, the jihadist form of Islam and its rise in KiM as part of the Pan-Islamic International,” Tanaskovic said in an interview to Belgrade-based daily Danas.

Majority of KiM Albanians heading to war zones in the Middle East are most certainly jihadists, but their knowledge of Islamic religion and culture is highly questionable, he noted.

The difference between jihadists and Islamists could be compared to the relation between the Bolsheviks or the Maoists and the Marxists, explains Tanaskovic, a former Serbian ambassador to Ankara, who will soon continue his diplomatic career with UNESCO.

The events in the Middle East add strongly to the frustration and radicalization of Muslims all over the world, including the territory of ex Yugoslavia, said Tanaskovic, pointing out that a significant part of the Muslim/Bosniak population in BiH and neighboring areas of Serbia and partly of Montenegro are not content with...