Both incidents happened over the weekend but were not linked.
Relating to the first incident, the two Islamic communities issued conflicting statements on the number of injured people, accusing each other of triggering the skirmish.
The Riyasat of the Islamic Community in Serbia, headed by reis Adem Zilkic, charged that rival members of the Islamic Community headed by mufti Muamer Zukorlic stopped Zilkic’s followers of holding prayers at the mosque in the town of Trnava, near Novi Pazar, the biggest town in Sandzak, the mostly Muslim populated region in Serbia.
The Riyasat claimed that no one was injured, while spokesman of Zukorlic's Meshihat of the Islamic Community in Serbia, Sead Sacirovic, said that at least four believers were hurt, among them a 70-year old who was punched in the head.
Zilkic’s Riyasat is close to Belgrade’s authorities while Zukorlic considers Bosnia and Herzegovina as the centre of his Meshihat.
The division of the two communities has led to many clashes in the past.
Both sides claimed they had a video recording of the incident outside the Trnava mosque but neither side has shown it yet.
In the meantime, Zilkic sternly condemned an incident in which unknown perpetrators wrote "vulgar and offensive" graffiti on the wall of the Serb Orthodox Church in Novi Pazar.
"Desecration of any religious object causes discord and, according to the Koran represents a greater sin than murder," said the statement issued by Zilkic’s Riyasat.
The church of St. Peter in Novi Pazar was built in the 9th century, and is the oldest preserved Serbian place of worship.
Emphasising the good relationship with the Serbian Orthodox Church, the statement said that ‘’those who do not wish well to their own people, especially when it comes to multiethnic territories such as Sandzak, cause this and similar provocations.’’
"Bosniaks and Serbs have been sharing this mutual space for years, living in peace, tolerance and successfully resisting all temptations," it added.
The church heads who reported the incident to local police, demanded urgent action in finding and punishing those responsible.
Source: Balkan Insight (English)
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