Also attacked NATO soldiers
Dozens injured in serious riots in northern Kosovo
Since Friday, Serbs in Kosovo have been demonstrating, sometimes violently, against ethnic Albanians in mayoral offices
© AFP
Dozens of people were injured in serious riots in northern Kosovo, including NATO troops from the Kosovo Peacekeeping Mission (KFOR). The demonstrators are demanding the withdrawal of Kosovan security forces from the region.
Dozens of people, including soldiers from the NATO-led peacekeeping mission in Kosovo (KFOR), have been injured in riots in Kosovo. According to sources in Rome and Budapest, more than 30 Italian and Hungarian KFOR soldiers suffered injuries, some seriously, when they confronted Serb demonstrators who wanted to storm the city administration in Zvecan in northern Kosovo on Monday. In addition to NATO, Rome and Berlin also condemned the riots and called on all sides to exercise restraint.
Kosovo: KFOR soldiers suffer injuries, some serious
“Several soldiers from the Italian and Hungarian KFOR contingents were attacked for no reason and suffered injuries with broken bones and burns from the explosion of incendiary bombs,” KFOR said on Monday evening. She condemned the attacks on her troops as “completely unacceptable”. KFOR commander Angelo Michele Ristuccia said his force would “continue to carry out its mandate impartially”.
The Hungarian Defense Ministry said more than 20 Hungarian KFOR soldiers were injured, seven of them seriously. According to Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, a total of eleven Italian KFOR soldiers were injured, three of them seriously. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said further attacks against KFOR would “not be tolerated”. The Foreign Office in Berlin called for an “immediate stop” to the violence.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said 52 Serbs were injured, three of them seriously. A 50-year-old was “injured by two shots by (ethnic) Albanian special forces,” he said on the online network Facebook.
Serbian demonstrators try to storm city administration in Zvecan
The Serbian demonstrators tried to break into the city administration building in Zvecan. The Kosovan police then used tear gas. KFOR soldiers intervened, positioning themselves between the police and the demonstrators with protective shields and batons. As an AFP reporter observed, the soldiers were then attacked by several demonstrators with stones, bottles and incendiary devices.
The demonstrators are demanding the withdrawal of the Kosovan security forces from the region. They are also demanding the dismissal of mayors who belong to the ethnic Albanian population group in the region inhabited mostly by ethnic Serbs.
In April, the Kosovar authorities held local elections in four Serb-majority towns. However, the Serbs largely boycotted the elections, allowing the Albanian minority to take control of local councils despite an overall turnout of less than 3.5 percent.
Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti installed the mayors last week, defying demands from the EU and the USA.
Protests against ethnic Albanians in mayoral offices have been going on since Friday
There had already been vehement protests last Friday against the assumption of mayoral offices by ethnic Albanians and confrontations with the security forces. The police also used tear gas. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic then put the army on “high alert” and sent soldiers to the border with Kosovo.
Kosovo, a country of 1.8 million people with a majority ethnic Albanian population, declared its independence from Serbia in 2008, but Belgrade still regards it as a Serbian province to this day. Around 120,000 Serbs live in Kosovo.