Serbian boy faces death threats for expressing pro-American views online
Rastko Pocesta, a 12-year-old boy in Serbia is under police protection and has become an unlikely symbol of the struggle between the liberal, pro-western minority and the Serbian nationalists, who still have strong anti-American feelings after NATO bombings during the late 1990’s.
Pocesta wrote a pro-American blog and was administrator of an anti-Serbian nationalist Facebook group. At first, the young boy posed as an adult online, but his identity was revealed when he gave a television interview. He is passionate about human rights and liberal values and loves the United States, which put him at risk in his home country.
For more we hear from BBC’s Mark Lowen, who is reporting from Belgrade.
The story you just read is available for free because thousands of listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Every day, reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you: We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.
Make a gift today, and you’ll get us one step closer to our goal of raising $25,000 by June 14. We need your help now more than ever!