STORY: In the north of Kosovo, the situation between Serbs and Albanian Kosovars continues to deteriorate. In the ethnically divided city of Mitrovica, Serbs erected new roadblocks on Tuesday, demanding the release of an arrested ex-policeman. The Serbian government had announced that it had put the army on high alert after weeks of tension with the Kosovar government in Pristina. Serbian Defense Minister Milos Vucevic visited soldiers on the border with Kosovo on Monday. There is no reason to panic, but cause for concern, according to the Defense Ministry in Belgrade. President Aleksandar Vucic is convinced that Kosovo is preparing an attack on the Serbs in the region and wants to remove the barricades by force. Around 50,000 Serbs live in the northern part of the majority Albanian Kosovo. For years they have refused to recognize the government in Pristina or Kosovo as a state. They are supported by Serbia, from which Kosovo declared independence in 2008.