Tear gas and stun grenades: unrest in northern Kosovo

After the swearing in of newly elected mayors in Kosovo’s Serb-inhabited north, unrest erupted. At the municipality office in the village Zvechan On Friday, Kosovo police dispersed Serb demonstrators who wanted to prevent the new mayor from taking office.

Local media reported that officials used tear gas and stun grenades. Violent demonstrators burned a police car.

3.5 percent of voter turnout

The four mayors of northern Kosovo have been sworn in over the past few days. Serbs had boycotted their elections the previous month, so turnout was only 3.5 percent.

The new mayors in the region, which is inhabited almost exclusively by Serbs, belong to the Albanian parties. Albanians live almost exclusively in the rest of Kosovo.

Escalation by order?

A spokesman for the Kosovo Serbs, who are under the control of the Serbian government, had called for a boycott of the recent municipal elections. Belgrade does not accept the country’s independence, which was declared in 2008, and demands its return.

The tour of the capital Pristina Made for riots on Friday Belgrade responsible. “The criminal and illegal structures of Serbia in northern Kosovo have been ordered to escalate the situation on the ground,” it wrote. Belrim VillaChief of Staff of the President of Kosovo Ottoman fjosaon Twitter.

Criticisms from Serbia

Serbian Minister of Defense Milos Vucevic Nevertheless, he declared that the Serbian Armed Forces had been brought to the “highest degree of combat readiness”. He accused Pristina of committing “violent acts” against the Serb ethnic group.

Communities were affected by the upheaval ZvechanAnd Liposavic And Zubin Potok. In northern Mitrovica, it was used Erden Atiq He had also secured a mayoralty from among the Albanian ethnic group, and the handover of the post the previous week had been done smoothly.