BELGRADE, Serbia
Kosovo police on Friday morning conducted searches in at least five locations in three Serb municipalities in the country’s north.
“The operation is being carried out in connection with the recent events in the village of Banjske,” the police said in a statement.
The operation is led by the relevant units of the Kosovo police, with the presence of a prosecutor on the spot.
“On this occasion, the Kosovo police informs citizens that they should not worry. The police implement the court order for control in coordination with the EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) and KFOR (NATO’s Kosovo Force),” the police added.
Local media said that the searches included properties owned by Milan Radoicic, vice president of the Serbian List – a minority political party in Kosovo in the northern town of Zvecan.
On Sunday, a clash broke out in the village of Banjska in northern Kosovo near the Serbian border when a group of armed Serbs blocked a bridge with two trucks. A shootout erupted after the group opened fire on police, leaving one police officer dead and another injured.
A large number of security forces were dispatched to the region, and the Brnjak border crossing between Kosovo and Serbia was closed.
Prime Minister Albin Kurti claimed that the armed Serbian group was led by Radojcic.
The area has been the scene of unrest since April, when local ethnic Serbs boycotted elections in northern Kosovo, followed by protests against the election of ethnic Albanian mayors.
Albanians are by far the largest ethnic group in Kosovo, followed by Serbs, with about half living in the country’s north.
Amid the unrest over the elections, NATO peacekeepers were deployed, including a group of additional Turkish reinforcement.
Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 and gained recognition from many countries, including Türkiye. But Belgrade has never recognized Kosovo and claims that its territory is still part of Serbia.
