Amid tensions between Serbia and Kosovo, an incident occurred near the Serbian border. Two Serbs were shot.
Two Serb residents of Kosovo were shot and wounded on Friday, including an 11-year-old boy. According to authorities, an elite Kosovo police officer has been arrested on suspicion of a crime. The incident took place near the Serb-majority village of Strpce in southern Kosovo.
According to the police, the assailant, who was out of work hours, fired from a car at the two cousins, aged 11 and 21, and fled. The motive for the attack was initially unclear. The two victims are not in mortal danger, police said.
According to the Serbian government, the two cousins were carrying an oak log, which is traditionally felled by Serbian Orthodox Christians for the Orthodox Christmas on January 7. The Serbian government spoke of an “assassination attempt”. Shortly after the attack, Serbs blocked a road in the area to demand the arrest of the suspect. Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti condemned the attack.
conflict comes to light
Kosovo, a country of 1.8 million people with a majority Albanian population, declared its independence from Serbia in 2008, but is still considered by Belgrade as a Serbian breakaway territory. Belgrade is encouraging the roughly 120,000 members of the Serb minority in northern Kosovo in their attempts to challenge the government’s authority in Pristina.
In December, the border conflict between Serbia and Kosovo came to a head. Serb residents of Kosovo have blocked traffic in the north of the country for weeks with roadblocks. They were not decommissioned until late 2022.
Rfi navigation account, time 20 minutes07.01.2023, 08:21| Act: 07/01/2023, 08:21