Serbian protesters blocked roads leading to border crossings in northern Kosovo for the second day on Sunday.
President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić has met with his National Security Council regarding the events in Kosovo, says the British Broadcasting Corporation BBC (switch to another service).
Tensions in Kosovo have intensified in recent days with demonstrations by the country’s ethnic Serbs and clashes with the Kosovo police.
Serbia has not recognized Kosovo, which gained independence from Serbia in 2008 and is ethnically Albanian in its majority, as an independent state.
Serbian protesters used trucks and other heavy vehicles to block roads leading to border crossings in northern Kosovo for the second day on Sunday, officials said.
Police in firefights
According to Kosovo authorities, police were fired upon late Saturday at several locations near the border with Serbia. The police returned fire.
Prime Minister of Kosovo
Albin Kurti described the protesters as “criminal gangs” and asked NATO-led peacekeeping forces to open the roads, according to the BBC. Kosovo authorities recently deployed police officers to Serb-majority areas in the country’s capital, Pristina, further tightening the situation.
The Serbian regions do not accept the central government of Kosovo.
Source: AFP