The Republic of Srpska

Today, in Banja Luka, regarding the ceremony organized on the occasion of the re-opening of the Ferhad Pasha mosque, the Republic of Srpska Minister of the Interior, Mr. Dragan Lukač, pointed out once again that it was necessary for Banja Luka to send the message of peace and coexistence and further specified that the security during the gathering would be at the highest level. ‘For a while now, the Ministry of the Interior has been performing the activities related to securing the ceremony of the re-opening of the Ferhad Pasha mosque. Numerous foreign and local delegations are expected, and all preparation activities are completed’, Minister Lukač said. In addition, the Republic of Srpska Police Director, Mr. Gojko Vasić, pointed out that the Police had performed all preparatory activities regarding the re-opening of the Ferhad Pasha mosque so that the ceremony could be held without incidents. Furthermore, head of the PSC Banja Luka, Mr. Boško Pandža, said that the headquarters for securing the ceremony had been constantly operating since today, and that, except the members of the Republic of Srpska Ministry of the Interior, there were also members of all security agencies from Bosnia and Herzegovina, supported by EUFOR, the Helicopter Service of the Republic of Srpska, and services of the City of Banja Luka. He also mentioned other security measures undertaken on the wider area of Banja Luka. According to Mr. Pandža, one of the measures is that today, starting from 4 PM, the streets in the city center near the mosque would be closed for traffic, and catering facilities would be closed.