On Tuesday, protesters gathered again in front of the town halls in the villages of Zvečan, Leposavić and Zubin Potok, where the mayors are now Kosovo Albanians. The Serbs, who want the region to be reunited with Serbia, are furious, and on Monday the KFOR soldiers were bombarded with petrol bombs, rocks and bottles when they tried to defend these town halls. A police patrol was surrounded, and the demonstrators threatened to kill. For eight hours it was negotiated. When the negotiations did not lead, the KFOR force decided to rescue the police by force. One protester was shot twice and is seriously wounded. One of the armored police cars that was held hostage for eight hours. The car has been painted with a nationalist Serbian symbol and “Z.” Photo: Reuters It was the police’s task to transport the mayors to the town hall, but it is unclear whether there were any Kosovo Albanian politicians in the police cars when they were taken hostage. 30 soldiers from the international KFOR force were injured, mainly soldiers from Hungary and Italy. According to local media, three of these should have gunshot wounds. Others will again have broken bones or burn injuries. 53 demonstrators were injured. A protester in a fight against the KFOR force. Photo: Reuters Confused local elections The conflict has its background in the fact that the Kosovo Albanian party has for several weeks lost the local elections in the Serbian-dominated region in the north of Kosovo. It comes from the fact that almost the entire Serbian minority boycotted the election so that voter turnout was still at 3.5 percent. Many Serbs are upset that there are now Kosovo Albanian mayors in the Serb-dominated municipalities in the north of Kosovo. And that is why they are demonstrating outside the relevant town halls to prevent these mayors from getting to office. The Serbian minority who live in the north of Kosovo do not recognize that Kosovo declared itself an independent state in 2008. They still see Belgrade as their capital. Serbian president under pressure Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić put the army on high alert on Tuesday. Support for the Serbian minority in Kosovo is a matter of struggle for Vučić, who himself traveled down to the border to follow the situation up close. Kosovo’s President Vjosa Osmani owes his Serbian colleague for staging the coup by using criminal gangs. Both sides owe each other for being the aggressive party while they themselves are the one looking for a peaceful solution. In any case, it may look like the unrest in Kosovo is coming at a time for Vučić. In Serbia, there have been large demonstrations against the government after two mass shootings in May. Serbian politicians are blamed for promoting a culture of violence in the media and in the way they handle political conflicts. By directing the focus to a conflict outside Serbia, Vučić can show vigor and steer the focus away from internal problems. For the KFOR force, this was the most serious day since the riots in 2004.
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That’s why there are strong clashes in Kosovo – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
