UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, May 31, 2023

Albanian Language Media:

Kurti in Bratislava talks about tensions in north, expresses Kosovo position (Telegrafi)
Kurti: I would be understanding if protests were peaceful (Koha)
Osmani to attend summit of leaders of European Political Community (media)
Konjufca on U.S. sanctions: This is bad for Kosovo (Nacionale)
Lajcak on the situation in the north: If the crisis does not end, everyone loses (Koha)
Police arrest two Serbs in north, seize weapons, flags, nationalistic symbols (Telegrafi)
Konjufca on internationals: They are equalising police with gangs in north (media)
“Disagreements to be resolved in dialogue; Serbia to stop war-inciting rhetoric” (Klan)
Zubin Potok Mayor working from office of communities in Caber (Koha)
Serb owner of bar in Zvecan threatened for sheltering reporters (Koha)
Rama: Serbian army at Kosovo border has zero power (media)
Joseph: Kurti deserved criticism, but the U.S. went too far (Kallxo/Al Jazeera)

Serbian Language Media:

Lajcak goes to Moldova to meet Vucic (RFE)
Arsenijevic: All responsibility lies with Kurti (KiM radio)
Krstic: Kurti in the north is only interested in territory (KiM radio)
Simonovic: “Terror by the instructions of the prime minister's office” (KiM radio)
Milovic: There are no criminal gangs at the gatherings (KiM radio)
"KLA" graffiti in several places in Orahovac (KiM radio, Radio Gorazdevac)
In Lipljan two incidents: Serbs threatened, and the SOC flag removed (KiM radio)
EULEX on the arrested Obrenovic: We are following the case; we will ask the lawyer about the treatment of the detainee (Kosovo Online)
Petkovic: Kurti's fake mayors and angry special forces are the source of the problem (Kosovo Online)
Jevtic: By leaving the session of the Assembly of Strpce, we express solidarity with the Serbian people in the north (Kosovo Online)
Civil society demands an urgent de-escalation of the situation in the north of Kosovo (RTK2)
Hill: Pristina will bear the consequences because it did not listen to the advice of the US (Tanjug, Blic)

Opinion:

Petritsch: The dialogue failed; the EU waited too long for Pristina to fulfil its obligation to form the CSM (ZSO) (Kosovo Online)

International:

What's going on in Kosovo? (eurotopics.net)
Macron Says Kosovo Bears 'Responsibility' For Tensions (barrons.com, AFP)
What’s happening in the north? (Kosovo 2.0)
Kosovo Olympic Committee Seeks IOC Disciplinary Proceedings Against Djokovic (RFE)
Von der Layen presents 4-pillar plan to bring Western Balkans closer to the EU (EWB)

Albanian Language Media

Kurti in Bratislava talks about tensions in north, expresses Kosovo position (Telegrafi)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, during his participation in today’s Globsec conference in Bratislava, said that Kosovo and Serbia have an agreement and that it needs to be implemented. “We have an agreement with Serbia, but it needs to be implemented. Implementation is lacking because Belgrade does not want it,” he said.

Kurti said that former mayors of the four northern municipalities resigned because Belgrade asked them to do so. “We have political pluralism in Kosovo. I don’t want to believe that there can be democracy without political pluralism, without human rights. This party [Serbian List] kicked everyone out of the race and in the end, they boycotted the elections. We postponed the elections for four months. Albanian candidates then won in four municipalities. They are mayors with a small M not a capital M, because the turnout was low, and they cannot be considered to have full political legitimacy, but lawfulness and constitutionality need to be implemented. They are mayors,” he said.

Kurti said that the international community recognised the election process and its results. “But when the mayors had to go to their offices in municipal buildings, Serbs started organising violent protests and attacked our police and KFOR soldiers. In every municipality we have police officers, and this is normal. We need to have special units of Kosovo in municipal buildings while outside there are violent groups that threaten to attack and paint nationalistic symbols ‘Z’ by showing admiration for Putin and the Russian army and the aggression in Ukraine,” he said.

Kurti defended the actions of Kosovo Police which helped the instalment of new Albanian mayors in the four Serb-majority municipalities in the north, despite resistance from local residents. “Our police are doing a professional job. They are trained. They know human rights and there are no violations by our police,” he said.

Kurti: I would be understanding if protests were peaceful (Koha)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said today that he met with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, and EU Special Representative for the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, Miroslav Lajcak, in Bratislava today. He said he made it clear that he would have been understanding if the protests of Serbs in the north would have been peaceful.

“The mayors need to be in municipal buildings. They don’t have a four-year mandate, but a two-year mandate, and it doesn’t have to be even that. I have talked with High Representative Borrell and with Lajcak, I told them that if the protests were peaceful, I would have been understanding. But not with bandits that write the letter ‘Z’ and who shout in Serbian language ‘kill, kill’. We will not surrender our democratic republic to these fascist bandits. If they want peaceful protests, they have a Prime Minister who was a political activist his whole life, and I am ready to listen to them and even maybe agree with them,” Kurti said.

Osmani to attend summit of leaders of European Political Community (media)

Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani has travelled to Moldavia where she will represent Kosovo at the second summit of the European Political Community (EPC). A press release issued by Osmani’s office notes that she will join 46 heads of state and leaders of EU institutions with the aim of promoting political dialogue and strengthening cooperation to address the most pressing issues of security and stability in Europe.

“Before the European leaders, President Osmani will convey the message of the unwavering commitment of the people and institutions of the Republic of Kosovo for the Euro-Atlantic integration of Kosovo as a guarantee for sustainable peace in the region and beyond.”

“During bilateral meetings, President Osmani will discuss furthering cooperation to push forward Kosovo’s application for membership in the EU, issues related to the situation in the region, and overcoming common challenges”.

Konjufca on U.S. sanctions: This is bad for Kosovo (Nacionale)

Kosovo Assembly President Glauk Konjufca said today that the recent developments are negative for Kosovo and the situation has never been like this. Commenting on U.S. sanctions because of the situation in the north, he said that “the sanctions are negative” and that “Kosovo needs to find a solution to emerge from this situation”.

“This is not good for us; this is a bad thing for Kosovo. We need open dialogue with our allies. The U.S. is not understanding our positions. The mayors there resigned without violence … the state had no other choice but to announce elections there in agreement with the U.S. Why I don’t understand the U.S., are we going outside our laws, if we are ok with the laws, are there bigger problems than the law. When elections were announced, the U.S. did not tell us that the elections should be annulled,” Konjufca is quoted as saying.

Lajcak on the situation in the north: If the crisis does not end, everyone loses (Koha)

The EU Special Representative Miroslav Lajcak, in an interview with the Italian newspaper "La Stampa", said that it is important to reduce tensions in the north of Kosovo.

Lajcak said that the problem is not who started the tensions, but how to end them.

"The problem is not who started them. If the crisis does not end, then everyone loses," Lajcak said.

Police arrest two Serbs in north, seize weapons, flags, nationalistic symbols (Telegrafi)

Kosovo Police said in a statement today that last night in the north of Kosovo they stopped a vehicle with Slovenian plates and two Serbian nationals. The two suspects were arrested and sent to the police station after several illegal items were found in the car. Police said they confiscated a police baton, a camouflage mask, several knives, several emblems with nationalistic symbols, a Serbian flag, several kinds of suspected narcotics, cell phones, different spray, metallic spheres, an ID cards of Serbian war veterans, an ID card of the Serbian security academy, and a hammer. After being interviewed, the suspects were sent to 48-hour detention based on the order of a prosecutor.

Police said they will continue to maintain a safe and secure environment for all Kosovo citizens without any difference and that it will implement legal measures against illegal actions that can threaten security, calmness, and stability.

Konjufca on internationals: They are equalising police with gangs in north (media)

Kosovo Assembly President Glauk Konjufca said in an interview with KS+ on Tuesday that the operation in the north was in line with Kosovo’s obligations and argued that the international community was equalising the Kosovo Police with the gangs in the north.

“The action in the north is in line with Kosovo’s obligations as a state. You know that the elections which were held were certified by the Central Election Commission and then the mayors of municipalities are expected to start their work normally in order to perform their competencies in accordance with the Constitution and after democratic elections. They had to go to their offices. This was taken care of by security institutions, but this caused a violent reaction by gangs that are ordered and orchestrated by Belgrade,” he said.

Konjufca also said that the international community needs to understand that it cannot equalise the Kosovo Police with “the gangs in the north”. “We must not lose focus, we need to know what our rights are, and the international community needs to clearly understand that there is no equalisation between the Kosovo Police that is not provoking anyone, trying to secure an environment for the mayors to perform their duties. Regardless of political disagreements with this position, be it from the former mayors, the Serbian List, or other circles that think they represent the Serb citizens, there can be no language of attacks with firearms and violence, this is our red line, not to tolerate this kind of behaviour,” he said.

Asked why the United States are not supporting Kosovo on the action in the north, Konjufca said: “because I think that for them stability and peace are very important. But stability and peace are not threatened because the mayors are obliged to go to their offices. Peace and stability, and everyone needs to understand this, the international community too, are being threatened by those that want to prevent them [the mayors] from going to work, using all means including violence and the use of arms. Let them determine clearly who is causing the violence. Our police did not provoke anyone, they did not shoot at anyone. They on the other hand were organised, we saw them wearing masks, gangs of Serbia, supported directly with statements by Dacic and Vucic, attacking the mayors and even shooting at NATO soldiers”.

“Disagreements to be resolved in dialogue; Serbia to stop war-mongering rhetoric” (Klan)

Four civil society organisations in Kosovo - Youth Initiative for Human Rights – Kosovo, Integra, the Kosovo Law Institute, and the Kosovar Gender Studies Centre - have reacted to the recent developments in the north, saying that all disagreements must be resolved through dialogue. They said that violence against citizens, public authorities, members of international security troops and the media is a serious violation of human rights, order and security, and an obstacle in the process of peace and reconciliation.

“From our work on the ground with citizens of the Serb community and all other communities living in Kosovo, we are noticing a negative impact from the irresponsible behaviour of state actors both in Pristina and Belgrade, and a direct impact on broader inter-ethnic relations in Kosovo. The consequences of actions undertaken in the north affect all citizens of Kosovo, therefore, the situation needs to be treated in peace, with care and calmness,” they argued.

Civil society representatives said they condemn any provocation, threat or intimidation by any party that worsens the situation and does not bring any concrete results. “Civil society calls on the government of Kosovo and Serb representatives in Kosovo to cease all unilateral actions and make the necessary compromises to overcome the situation in the north of Kosovo in full coordination with the international community and other parties by focusing on the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia,” they said.

Civil society representatives also called on Serbian authorities to stop war-inciting rhetoric and to be constructive in reaching a peaceful solution through dialogue.

Zubin Potok Mayor working from office of communities in Caber (Koha)

Zubin Potok Mayor Izmir Zeqiri confirmed to the news website that today he is working from the office for communities in the village of Caber. He worked from the same office on Tuesday too. Zeqiri said the situation in the municipality is currently calm.

Serb owner of bar in Zvecan threatened for sheltering reporters (Koha)

Mladen Petrovic, the owner of a bar in Zvecan, who gave shelter to reporters on Monday, told the media today he has been threatened for sheltering reporters. The news website recalls that Xhemajl Rexha, head of the Association of Journalists of Kosovo, said that thanks to Perovic’s help the reporters could safely be escorted outside Zvecan.

Rama: Serbian army at Kosovo border has zero power (media)

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, during a panel discussion in Bratislava today on “Open Roads: Balkans Back in Business”, was asked to comment on the deployment of the Serbian army at the border with Kosovo. He argued that the presence of the Serbian Army at the border with Kosovo is a show of internal politics. “The Serbian Army at the border is the most unbelievable display of internal politics, because the Serbian Army at the border with Kosovo has power equal to zero. It cannot do anything. This has to do only with internal politics,” Rama is quoted as saying.

Joseph: Kurti deserved criticism, but the U.S. went too far (Kallxo/Al Jazeera)

Edward Joseph, senior fellow at the John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, in an interview with Al Jazeera commented on the attack against KFOR peacekeepers in the north saying that “this is outrageous behaviour. NATO was actually restrained by labelling these individuals as protesters when really they are criminals. This is criminal conduct. This isn't a protest. And we know for a fact, US officials know this, that this situation is controlled from Belgrade. Belgrade controls essentially criminal structures that dominate the north and oppress that sector of Kosovo and we see today this disgraceful display of beating KFOR soldiers who are there as peacekeepers … That doesn’t mean that Pristina the capital of the Republic of Kosovo doesn’t also have some responsibility here and Prime Minister Kurti ignored appeals from the United States and its EU partners to restrain and be very measured in the approach to the north and this of course brings to the situation we have today”.

Joseph also said that “Prime Minister Kurti deserved criticism, but the U.S. went too far”.

Watch full interview at: https://t.ly/Muk6H

Serbian Language Media

Lajcak goes to Moldova to meet Vucic (RFE)

Radio Free Europe unofficially learns that the special envoy for dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, Miroslav Lajcak, is travelling to Chisinau, the capital of Moldova, where he will meet with the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, and in the coming days he will also be in Belgrade and Pristina.

On Thursday, June 1, Chisinau hosted the second summit of the European Political Community, which was launched in October 2022 in Prague at the initiative of French President Emmanuel Macron.

Vucic will also participate in the summit, and Lajcak will travel to Chisinau just to talk with the Serbian president about the latest developments in the north of Kosovo.

RFE reported that, so far, they did not receive any answer or confirmation from the Presidency of Serbia.

Arsenijevic: All responsibility lies with Kurti (KiM radio)

"I think Albin Kurti made a serious mistake when he didn't listen to the advice of Quint not to do this and act on his own. All responsibility lies with him, from the moment he spat here in the face of the entire international community last Friday," the leader of the opposition CI Serbian survival, Aleksandar Arsenijevic, told KiM radio, commenting on protests in the north of Kosovo.

"Citizens came in large numbers to contribute to the removal of special units from the building of the Provisional Authority (PA) of the Republic of Serbia, which served as host to the guest, the mayor of Kosovo," said Asenijevic.

He added that the situation is calm for now.

"But I think that over time the citizens' patience will wear off because we are facing, you know that I warned about such possibilities, with the repression of the police special forces. I know from conversations with the citizens that, since Friday, when there was the first entry where I, and many other fellow citizens, were beaten, many want a final showdown with the Kosovo special forces. They can't stand the beatings, stopping, and shooting at people anymore. We had them wounding Mr. Jovanovic from behind, close to the head," concluded Arsenijevic.

Krstic: Kurti in the north is only interested in territory (KiM radio)

"I think it is now quite clear that the politician who is causing problems in Kosovo is Albin Kurti, that he is an ultra-nationalist who at all costs did not want to concede even an inch to the Serbs, that he is only interested in the territory in the north of Kosovo, and not the people who live there,'' Branislav Krstic, a radio journalist and analyst from North Mitrovica, told KiM radio.

"The international community warned him for a long time, the Euro-Atlantic interest groups, above all the American administration. The psycho-biological portrait of Albin Kurti is that he does not want to allow the Serbs absolutely anything, and that he will push it until the moment when he will be asked to resign," said Krstic.

He believes that the signals from the USA in recent days clearly indicate the further development of the situation.

"The demands of the US administration, from the announcements and statements of Ambassador Hovenier, as well as the failure to respond to the disastrous reaction of Albin Kurti by the US Secretary Blinken, will probably cause not only the withdrawal of police forces from the municipality, but the withdrawal of all Kosovo Police forces from all areas where Serbs are the majority. The police structure that will be at the border crossing will probably be tolerated," he added.

Krstic stated that "it is completely clear that when KFOR units install an enclave in the center of Zvecan that it is a situation that will last for some time".

"What we can expect is,I am convinced of that, that the Serbs will be completely calm. My feeling is subjective, given that I was present there the whole time, that KFOR was completely unprepared on the first day. I am talking about the incident on Monday when dozens of Serbs could gather and enter the municipality. Therefore, KFOR was not ready," he stated.

According to him, the situation has changed.

"Today is about something completely different, today the NATO forces show us their power and ability to fully control the situation. I am convinced that the only solution is for us all to be safe, to preserve this piece of peace that we have. I think that the epilogue is welcomed by the Serbian community in the north and I think that they (citizens) now have no reason to react differently, except to gather here peacefully and wait for an agreement that must be reached at the table," concluded Branislav Krstic.

Simonovic: “Terror by the instructions of the prime minister's office” (KiM radio)

"The situation we are in, me personally and my entire people in the north of Kosovo, is quite tense and I think the breaking point has been reached. We have been suffering the terror that the Kosovo police, most likely under the instructions of the Prime Minister's office, have been perpetrating on these people for more than a year," said Srdjan Simonovic from the NGO "Human Center Mitrovica" for Radio KiM.

Simonovic said that he came to the protest out of his own conviction. He considers the occupation of the premises of the temporary authority by members of the Kosovo Police to be the final straw.

He pointed out that there are rumors, which come from Pristina, that there are Serbs among the crowd who were "brought in from Serbia".

"I think that you, as journalists, and your cameras can make sure that there is not a single person here who came from outside. I know all the residents in Zvecan, and I assure you that there is no one from outside. There are old, and young people here, there are also children," Simonovic added.

He believes that the conflict between citizens and members of KFOR on Monday in Zvecan could have been avoided.

"The part of the international community that is in charge of security, I think, fell for the provocations and reacted by using excessive force. It is known, when a person sits on the asphalt, that he can be removed calmly, if he does not resist. We, who carefully watched the footage, saw that those protestors did not offer any resistance until they started being beaten by KFOR. If they, I mean KFOR, wanted to respect the letter of the law, then they should have calmly moved them, grabbed them by the legs and arms and moved them to the other side. They did not follow those procedures, so I think they took the first step that led to the tragedy that happened the day before yesterday," he said.

Simonovic added that for the Serbs living in the north of Kosovo, the conflict with KFOR is not good, because that mission is the guarantor of security.

"At least until recently, with their sporadic incidents, KFOR did not take sides so openly. However, the day before yesterday it was a different story," concluded Simonovic.

Milovic: There are no criminal gangs at the gatherings (KiM radio)

KiM radio reports that former mayor Dragisa Milovic addressed the citizens gathered in front of Zvecan municipality, saying that for the sake of the truth and for the benefit of the present media, he must emphasise that there are no illegal structures, organised criminal gangs and members of “Wagner” at the gathering, as is heard from Pristina.

He repeated the demands of the gathered and called on the citizens to be united.

“Here are the citizens of our most beautiful municipality, the municipality of Zvecan, who have lived here for years and centuries. Our brothers from North Mitrovica are also here, Serbs have lived in this area since the 11th century. The mediaeval town of Zvecan and its walls bear witness to that,” he said.

The protests, he added, are not against KFOR and NATO.

“On this occasion, we want to say that we regret the conflicts imposed on us and what happened and that everyone who was injured, and above all our Dragisa Galjak, who is the one that was the most gravely injured, that we wish them all speedy recovery and that those scenes that took place in Zvecan, that they never happen again,” he emphasised.

Milovic recalled that on May 26, special units of the Kosovo Police forcefully occupied the building of the Zvecan municipality.

“Whether KFOR knew about this and whether it assisted, we are looking for an answer. Our demands are that those special units with long guns, armoured transporters, move away and leave the building of Zvecan municipality. The reason why they did this is that, as they say, the mayors came, who after some voting in containers got 100 votes and wanted to represent these people and be the mayor of Zvecan Municipality. They are not acceptable and welcome, that is our message,” he added.

Milovic said that health workers are at the rally.

“Here among us are the heroes who led the fight against COVID-19. Doctors, nurses, technicians, ambulance drivers, other staff of Clinical Hospital Centre of Kosovska Mitrovica, Health House Zvecan, Health House of Kosovska Mitrovica, here are ordinary people who want to live peacefully, who are worried about their future and the safety of their children. Here are the people who are saying “stop” to the terror of Pristina, Kurti’s terror. We see special units on the Bistrica Bridge, in the entire north. Stop the occupation of the north, that is our demand,” he said.

He called on the citizens to be united and to put aside party and personal divisions.

“The most important thing for us is to preserve the peace and stay on the ancestral land. We all have one obligation, a moral one, to thank on this occasion one of the greatest among us - the Serb, the honorary citizen of our municipality, Novak Đoković, and to thank him for representing the country of Serbia in a magnificent way, and on this occasion, before we present him with the flag of our country of Serbia, we are sending it to Novak to raise it in Paris when he wins Roland Garros,” Milovic said.

He repeated the request for the release of Rados Petrovic and Dusan Obrenovic.

“We have information that they were sent from South Mitrovica police station to Pristina, where they will be brought before the judge at 12:00. We all know that they are innocent, that they did nothing, that we were all together with them. This is the message: that all our people who are innocent and yet detained in Pristina’s prisons should be released as soon as possible, and we are with them and will stay until the demands are met. Long live Serbia,” Milovic concluded, reported KiM radio.

"KLA" graffiti in several places in Orahovac (KiM radio, Radio Gorazdevac)

On the private vehicle of D.Dj from Orahovac, the graffiti "UCK" was written with black grease paint. The owner of the car noticed the graffiti in the morning when he accompanied his daughter to school and reported the case to the Kosovo police, which investigated, reports KiM radio today, citing Radio Gorazdevac.

Graffiti was written on several other houses in the streets around the church in Orahovac, including the houses of R.L., who lives there, and the house of Z.K. , in which there are no residents.

KiM radio recalls that brother of D.Dj. was kidnapped in 1998, and brother of R.L. was kidnapped in 1999.

All incidents with graffiti in Orahovac that happened in the last two days happened near the church, which is the center of gathering of Serbs in this city, reported KiM radio.

In Lipljan two incidents: Serbs threatened, and the SOC flag removed (KiM radio)

KiM radio reported yesterday on two incidents in Lipljan. As this portal reported, in Lipljan two days ago, the Serbs who gathered in one of the local shops were threatened, and then during the same night, the flag of the Serbian Orthodox Church, which was flying in the courtyard of the temples of St. Flora and Lavra and Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, was removed, cut and taken away.

KiM radio reported that that night around 7.15 pm, an Albanian entered one of the local shops in Lipljan and threatened the Serbs. One of the present at the time, told this to KiM Radio, who wished to remain anonymous.

"What are you doing in Mitrovica? Get lost to Serbia, he told me. We thought he was joking, but then he started cursing. He said, 'I'm going to set you all on fire', and then he ran away,'' he said.

He told KiM radio that he is not afraid, although it was not the same to him and that he is on his own.

KiM radio interlocutor believes that this incident relates to pressures on the remaining Serbs in Lipljan to sell their properties.

"There were a lot of us, every day someone goes," he concluded.

A church member and resident of Lipljan, Jovica Miric, told KiM Radio that when he arrived at work, the police were in front of the church gate, and told him that the flag had been removed from the bell tower, that it had been cut and taken away.

He said that the police were investigating but said nothing more.

Surveillance cameras are placed at the entrance to the church gate, but according to Miric, they are not working.

"Whenever I ask (Kosovo police) when something happens, do the cameras work, they say they don't," he added.

Miric connects the incident with the conflicts in the north of Kosovo.

EULEX on the arrested Obrenovic: We are following the case; we will ask the lawyer about the treatment of the detainee (Kosovo Online)

EULEX is following the case closely and will attend the custody hearing. During the detention hearing, EULEX observers will be able to ask the lawyer about the treatment of the detainee, portal Kosovo Online was told by this mission, when asked to comment the statement of lawyer Miljkovic that his client Dusan Obrenovic was brutally beaten by the Kosovo police and whether anyone would from the European mission will investigate these allegations.

According to this portal, EULEX stated, in addition to this case, that they are monitoring more than 60 cases related to Kosovo Serbs.

"We can confirm that EULEX is closely monitoring the case and will be attending the detention hearing. During the detention hearing, EULEX observers will be able to ask lawyers about the treatment of the detainee. EULEX continues to closely monitor over 60 cases related to Kosovo Serbs, or possibly affect relations between communities through their Case Monitoring Unit," EULEX said.

Two arrested Serbs, Rados Petrovic and Dusan Obrenovic, were transferred this morning from police custody in South Mitrovica to court custody in Pristina, and they should appear before a judge today.

Petkovic: Kurti's fake mayors and angry special forces are the source of the problem (Kosovo Online)

The director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Petar Petkovic, reacted on Twitter to the statement of Kosovo PM Albin Kurti, who said that "as long as the angry mob is on the streets, threatening to attack, the special units must be in the municipal buildings" and told Kurti that it would be better to recall his "fake mayors and angry special units" because they are the source of the problem, reported Kosovo Online.

Petkovic wrote that Kurti was attacked by an angry mob of Serbian doctors, municipal workers, and students.

"While Kurti is imagining seeing an 'angry mob' consisting of Serbian doctors, municipal workers, students in front of Serbian facilities, it might be that the 250-meter flag of Serbia has clouded his mind! He should better recall his fake mayors and angry special forces who shoot Serbs in the back because they are the source of all problems," reported the portal, citing Petkovic's post on Twitter.

Jevtic: By leaving the session of the Assembly of Strpce, we express solidarity with the Serbian people in the north (Kosovo Online)

The Mayor of Strpce Dalibor Jevtic, the municipal leadership and councillors of Serbian nationality left today the fifth regular session of the Municipal Assembly as a sign of support for the Serbs in the north, thus showing, as Jevtic said, resistance to Pristina politics.

In his address at the beginning of the session, Jevtic said that he felt obliged to express a clear position regarding the events in the north of Kosovo as the mayor of the municipality and emphasized that everything that has been happening in the last few days affects all Serbs in Kosovo.

He called on the councillors to leave the Assembly session as a sign of support for the Serbs in the north thus showing solidarity and resistance to the politics of Pristina.

"As the president of a municipality whose fellow citizens, according to the opinion of the Constitutional Court of Kosovo, are still in detention illegally and in violation of basic human rights, as well as because of everything that happened in the previous period and because of the challenges that we in the municipality of Strpce faced, taking all that in mind, I invite you to leave this session, both as a sign of support, and as a clear message of solidarity with our people and with our colleagues in the north, but also of solidarity due to everything that is happening to us, I repeat, due to the wrong policy of the regime in Pristina," Jevtic said.

He reminded that in the Assembly of the Municipality of Strpce, a two-thirds majority had sent an appeal and a request to enable the work of the Temporary Authority, to enable the existence of the people who make a living from this work, but that no response had been received.

Jevtic appealed to his compatriots in the north to protest peacefully, democratically, and not to attack KFOR members in any way, and pointed out that the Serbian people want to fight for the right peacefully and democratically to a normal life and survival. Once again, he called on the Government of Kosovo to stop the institutional violence they have been perpetrating since they came to power, because, as he said, this is not the path and model that should be used when it comes to life in these areas.

Civil society demands an urgent de-escalation of the situation in the north of Kosovo (RTK2)

The non-governmental organization "Youth Initiative for Human Rights of Kosovo", which includes four organizations: Youth Initiative for Human Rights, Integra, IKD and the Kosovo Center for Gender Studies, requested an immediate de-escalation of the situation in the north, reported RTK2.

The full statement reads:

''Civil society is following with great concern the situation that arose in the north of the Republic of Kosovo after the decision of four mayors elected in the municipalities in the north of the country to start working in their offices. This action caused a reaction and violent protests in four northern municipalities, where the targets of the attack were journalists, police and KFOR soldiers.

As non-governmental organizations, we ask that stability, peace, and security in the north of Kosovo be the main guide for all involved parties. All disputes must be resolved through dialogue, and violence and unilateral action must stop immediately. We believe that the promotion and protection of peace and human rights for all citizens, and especially for marginalized groups in Kosovo, have no alternative and must always be the priority of every decision-making process. Violence against citizens, state authorities, members of international security forces as well as the media represents a serious violation of human rights, order, and security in Kosovo, and moreover, it hinders the peace and reconciliation process.

From our field work with citizens of the Serbian community and all other communities living in Kosovo, we observe the negative impact of the irresponsible actions of state actors in both Pristina and Belgrade, which directly affects wider inter-ethnic relations in Kosovo. The consequences of the actions taken in the north of Kosovo affect all citizens of Kosovo, so the situation must be resolved in a calm, careful and sensitive way.

The well-being of all citizens should be the guiding principle and starting point of every decision-making by public institutions. Civil society condemns any provocation, threat or intimidation of any party that only worsens the situation and does not bring concrete results in greater representation and respect for the rights of communities living in Kosovo.

Civil society calls on the government of Kosovo and Serbian representatives in Kosovo to stop unilateral actions and make appropriate compromises to overcome the situation created in the north of Kosovo in full coordination with the international community and other parties that focus on the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia.

On the other hand, we call on the authorities in Serbia to stop their war-mongering rhetoric in Kosovo and be constructive in achieving a peaceful solution through dialogue with the mediation of the European Union.

Peace and security are always the solution and institutions in Kosovo should immediately work to reduce tensions in the north and achieve a solution that would help greater integration of the Serbian community in Kosovo.''

Hill: Pristina will bear the consequences because it did not listen to the advice of the US (Tanjug, Blic)

The US ambassador in Belgrade, Christopher Hill, said today that Pristina will bear the consequences because it did not listen to the advice of the USA, that this will affect relations with Washington, but that he is not familiar with all the details either, reported daily Blic.

According to Blic, Hill told reporters in Belgrade that progress must be made in the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina, the formation of the CSM (ZSO) and the continuation of the dialogue.

"Our Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, has made it clear that he opposes any moves Kurti has made that are contrary to all the advice we've been giving and Blinken has said there will be consequences. We must try not to lose our compass and direction, and it is the formation of the CSM (ZSO), the normalization of relations. It is necessary to reconcile the Balkan region and to continue in the direction of the EU and Euro-Atlantic integrations," Hill said.

He added that the previous days were very difficult in many ways, and that America regretted all the attacks on KFOR and NATO soldiers and it should not happen again.

Opinion

Petritsch: The dialogue failed; the EU waited too long for Pristina to fulfill its obligation to form the CSM (ZSO) (Kosovo Online)

The former EU envoy for Kosovo, Wolfgang Petritsch, believes that the latest events in the north of Kosovo show that the dialogue has failed, and that a new strategy is needed, portal Kosovo online reports.

Petritsch told Kosovo Online that he is very worried about the current situation in the north of Kosovo.

"One must consider whether this was evidence that the dialogue has failed and that Brussels must develop a new strategy that would include conditionality and clear deadlines," he explained, adding that if the process of forming the CSM (ZSO) do not start soon, it can be said that the dialogue has failed and that the strategy will have to be changed.

"In the dialogue, both parties must fulfil their obligations. And ten years of failure to fulfil the obligation to form the CSM (ZSO) is too long," underlined Petritsch.

He added that it was a mistake that the EU waited too long for Pristina to fulfil that request.

"Ten years ago, the good will of the participants in the dialogue was counted on. Now the EU must admit that it waited too long on fulfilment of obligations," he said, pointing out that a new strategy is needed, the focus of which would be implementation with clear deadlines, because this is what the dialogue is currently missing.

International

What's going on in Kosovo? (eurotopics.net)

Amid rising tensions in Kosovo, Nato is boosting its KFOR peacekeeping force which has been stationed there since 1999. Violence flared in the country after local elections held a month ago which were boycotted by a majority of the ethnic Serbs in the north, resulting in Kosovo Albanians being elected as mayors on very few votes. Europe's press doubts that Nato's move will calm the situation.