Original article (in Serbian) was published on 20/8/2025; Author: Milica Ljubičić
In recent weeks, dozens of fires have been recorded in Serbia, while neighboring countries are also battling blazes. Over the past two months, the southern part of Serbia has been particularly affected, including villages in the municipalities of Lebane and Medveđa.The pro-government Serbian tabloid Informer used the recent fires in the two municipalities to claim they were set by members of the Albanian community. However, these claims rely solely on an alleged anonymous source cited by the tabloid. The Public Prosecutor’s Office in Lebane told Raskrikavanje that, for now, they have neither suspects nor any information indicating that members of the Albanian community are behind the fires in Medveđa and Lebane.
In several municipalities in southern Serbia, multiple fires have been recorded in recent weeks, including villages in the municipalities of Lebane and Medveđa.
These fires have been used by the tabloid Informer to stoke ethnic hatred and divisions, claiming that the blazes in southern Serbia were deliberately set by members of the Albanian community, whom the tabloid derogatorily refers to as “Šiptars.” Both municipalities are situated in southern Serbia, close to Kosovo.
“A wildfire has engulfed the area between Lebane and Medveđa, and the firefighters’ efforts are being hampered by the fact that the arsonist setting the fires is right there,” Informer wrote.
The outlet cited “unconfirmed reports” and in its article published on August 18 further alleged that “Šiptars are setting the fires.”
“The area between Medveđa and Lebane is a multiethnic community, and as soon as firefighters put out one section, another one flares up. Every arson attack happened near Serbian houses,” an “unnamed source” told Informer.
Apart from this anonymous source, Informer provides no other evidence to support these claims.
The alleged “findings” of this tabloid — that members of the Albanian community are behind the fires — were rejected by the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Lebane, which has jurisdiction over the two municipalities.
In a written response to Raskrikavanje, the Prosecutor’s Office said that during 2025, a total of 16 fires were recorded in the villages of Lebane and Medveđa municipalities — 15 in Lebane and one in Medveđa.
The Prosecutor’s Office added that, so far, “there are no suspects, nor any information indicating that the fires were set by individuals of Albanian nationality.”
According to the statement, inspections were conducted in all cases with the presence of a fire protection inspector, while the prosecutor’s office ordered the police to take measures to identify potential perpetrators. No additional findings have been reported so far.
Meanwhile, as reported by JuGmedia on August 16, dry grass and low vegetation burned in the village of Gornji Bučumet, which belongs to the municipality of Medveđa, and several houses and auxiliary buildings were destroyed.
Medveđa and Lebane are not the only areas hit by wildfires. In recent months, villages in Leskovac, Prokuplje and Vranje have also been affected.
On August 12, Južne vesti reported that wildfires in southern Serbia had affected more than 1,500 hectares of forest, over 800 of which burned in the territory of Vranje.
In early July, a fire struck several villages in the municipality of Žitorađa, with the village of Dubovo suffering the worst damage. As Niške vesti reported at the time, about 300 houses were destroyed by fire in the villages of Donje Momčilovo, Konjarnik and Dubovo, prompting a state of emergency in the municipalities of Prokuplje and Žitorađa.
Beyond Serbia, wildfires have also been raging in neighboring Montenegro in recent days. The Directorate for Emergency Situations said that wildfires remain active in Danilovgrad, Budva and Šavnik, while the situation is being monitored in Podgorica and Nikšić. Fires have also spread to parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia. According to reports published by several media outlets, firefighters are battling a blaze in the border area between Trnovica and Drijen, on the frontier between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Translated in English using AI tools, then thoughtfully refined by a human editor.
