29 May-The NATO-led KFOR peacekeeping force on Monday said that 25 of its troops, including 11 from Italy, were injured in the clashes with ethnic Serbs in northern Kosovo who were trying to take over the offices of one of the municipalities where ethnic Albanian mayors took up their posts last week.
Three are in critical condition but none of the injuries are life-threatening.
“NATO strongly condemns the unprovoked attacks against KFOR troops in northern Kosovo, which have led to a number of them being injured. Such attacks are totally unacceptable. Violence must stop immediately. We call on all sides to refrain from actions that further inflame tensions, and to engage in dialogue. KFOR will take all necessary actions to maintain a safe and secure environment, and continue to act impartially, in accordance with its mandate under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 of 1999”, a statement by NATO said.
The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, also expressed her “strongest condemnation of the attack on the KFOR mission”.
Zvecan, Leposavic, Zubin Potok and Mitrovica, four municipalities in the north, held early elections last month.
KFOR had tried to disperse demonstrators in front of Zvecan town hall, 45 kilometres north of the capital, Pristina, to protest the inauguration of the new mayor of the Albanian ethnicity.
In the afternoon, KFOR soldiers called on Serbs to clear the way for two vehicles from the Kosovar special police forces.
The soldiers then used tear gas and stun grenades to protect the Kosovar officers in the vehicles and disperse protesters, according to witnesses and local media.
/Argumentum.al
