NATO secures municipal buildings in Kosovo amid new clashes
The NATO-led international peacekeeping Kosovo Force (KFOR) cordoned off municipality offices in Northern Kosovo following clashes between the ethnic Serbian community and Kosovo police, Radio Television of Serbia (RTS) reported on Monday.
Kosovo police issued a statement acknowledging the right to peaceful gathering but accused protesters in Zvecan of "showing violence and throwing tear gas" in an attempt to enter the local government buildings, to which they responded with the use of "spray." RTS reported that the police attacked municipality employees with tear gas after KFOR allowed the workers to pass through its own blockade.
New tensions have emerged after the United States condemned the Kosovo police's attempts last Friday to enter the municipal buildings, calling on Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti to "reverse course."