Clashes in Kosovo, 14 Italian KFOR soldiers injured

The new tensions in northern Kosovo risk precipitating the situation in the heart of the Balkans, with the ethnic conflict which today recorded a worrying escalation resulting in violent clashes between soldiers of the NATO Force and Serbian demonstrators who oppose the entry into service of new mayors of Albanian ethnicity in the four major municipalities in the north with a Serb majority. The new serious incidents, after those of last Friday, took place in Zvecan, where the KFOR soldiers, after repeated warnings and appeals for the lifting of the blockades which also prevented the movement of local police vehicles, confronted the Serbian demonstrators who had been besieging from hours the local Town Hall to prevent the new mayor from taking office. In the harsh clashes, the military made extensive use of truncheons, tear gas and deafening bombs, while the Serbs responded with a heavy throwing of stones, bottles, Molotov cocktails and other objects.

The balance of the battle is very heavy, with dozens of NATO soldiers injured, 14 of whom are Italians, from the 9th L’Aquila Alpine Regiment. At first there was talk of 41 soldiers involved but in the evening the KFOR command reported 34 wounded soldiers of various nationalities. Three of our compatriots suffered fairly serious injuries – mostly burns from the Molotov cocktails and fractures – but they are not life threatening. The commander of the KFOR mission, the Italian general Angelo Michele Ristuccia, expressing his solidarity with the wounded soldiers, made it known that he is following the evolution of the situation firsthand and assured that the NATO contingent remains “impartial”. Immediate solidarity and participation from Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni – who condemned the attack as “unacceptable and irresponsible”, warning that no other actions of the kind will be tolerated – and from the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense, Antonio Tajani and Guido Crosetto, who expressed the closeness of the institutions to the wounded soldiers and the wish for a speedy recovery. “It is essential – Meloni underlined – to avoid further unilateral actions by the Kosovar authorities and for all the parties involved to immediately take a step back, contributing to the easing of tensions. The Italian government’s commitment to peace and the stability of Western Balkans is maximum and we will continue to work with our allies”. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani telephoned Serbian President Aleksandr Vucic and Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti forcefully reiterating that “all violence and all provocation must cease immediately: Kosovo and Serbia must fully implement the agreements they signed thanks to the facilitation of the European Union. Violence is unacceptable. Italy wants to contribute to achieving a sustainable solution in the North of Kosovo in a very short time”.

52 Serbs were injured in the clashes in Zvecan, one of the four municipalities in the north with a Serb majority. The others are Zubin Potok, Leposavic and North Mitrovica. And Serbian President Vucic accused KFOR of failing to defend the Serbian population who contest the election of new ethnic Albanian mayors which took place in the local vote on April 23, a consultation boycotted by the Serbs and whose legitimacy is also contested by Belgrade due to the extremely low voter turnout, just over 3%. It is unacceptable, the Serbs argue, for mayors representing 2% of the population to govern cities whose inhabitants are 98% ethnic Serb. The clashes took place at the end of a hectic day full of meetings, contacts and phone calls in an attempt to defuse what appears to be a bomb ready to explode at any moment with unpredictable consequences. Pristina’s leadership – President Vjosa Osmani and Prime Minister Albin Kurti -, underlining the regularity of the April 23 vote, point the finger at Belgrade and the illegal structures it maintains in northern Kosovo. Structures, they argue, which would have turned into criminal gangs that attack the Kosovar police, the KFOR military and journalists, and to which they blame the entirety of the violence and persistent instability in the north. The Serbian authorities for their part accuse Pristina of wanting to occupy the north with the aim of expelling the local Serb population. In the evening Vucic, on live TV, confirmed the dispatch of troops to the border with Kosovo. And new protests are announced for tomorrow. A wall-to-wall situation that seems to have no way out.

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