Police respond to protest of the murder of an ethnic Albanian - Kosovo

Several tens of Albanian citizens have protested in the south of the main bridge over the Ibar river in Mitrovica, in a sign of an revolt for the murdered Albanian (Selver Haradinaj, 32) in the north of Mitrovica. In the scene had numerous EULEX forces and the Kosovo Police members.

Mitrovica, KOSOVO – by Vedat Xhymshiti
Tuesday, April 10, 2012 | Demotix

Tensions have continued in Mitrovica after the Serbian citizens attacked the static points established by the Kosovo Police, after the recent explosions.

Several ethnic Albanian citizens are concerned about what happened due to the resistance of the Serbian citizens, so they gathered together on the main bridge of Mitrovica that ethnically divide the city into south dominated by ethnic Albanians and north dominated by ethnic Serbs.

Some several tens of EULEX special unit police forces in riot gear, moved to be placed over the main bridge aiming to keep the situation under control. Ethnic Albanian citizens cheer and yelled at the Kosovo Police Members, blaming and asking them to go to the north and improve public order and safety, while sending messages to the Kosovo Interior Minister Mr. Bajram Rexhepi to leave the ministry since according to citizens he is not capable of exercising his constitutional obligations.

In this protest were participating also some several Vetëvendosje (English: Self-Determination) political subject activists, including the head member Fisnik Ismajli, which is the head of the national campaign for the domestic products “Duaje Tenden” (English: Love Yours).

Halit Berani the head of the Human Rights Council in Mitrovica region told demotix in a video interview that recent protests have no identification by which they were organized; he doubts any criminal political network that is in a close cooperation with the government organizes them.

“Those protests, are not well organized, they’re playing as protests, but they have no organizer, for sure this is someone who is linked somehow to the country’s government criminal networks, that wanted to make an operation today to enter the goods from Serbia that are on their personal benefit” Barani told Demotix.

The protesters was dispersed peacefully, by keep chanting anti-government slogans, promising they will organize a self-defense team so they will defend their families by possible attacks in northern ethnically divided town of Kosovo, Mitrovica.

Haradinaj was killed this Sunday at his home, after the detonation of an explosive charge, while other members of his family were seriously injured.

Due to the constant provocations of the illegal Serbian structures in Northern Kosovo, the Albanian citizens had required the establishment of a static police presence in their community, which the Interior Minister, Bajram Rexhepi promised to establish for avoiding a repeat of these attacks.

After the attack on Haradinaj’s family, all Kosovo highest institutions reacted, including the President, the opposition and majority parties, asking the authorities to investigate and bring the “criminals to justice”, whose action is considered a terrorist act.

The Special representative of the EU in Kosovo, Samuel Zbogar, expressed his shock about the news, and he gave the condolences to Haradinaj’s family. He appealed all communities to stay calm and leave everything to the police.