8 arrested after Kosovo’s water and electricity outages erupted

Article content

PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) – A powerful explosion destroyed a water canal and temporarily cut off water and electricity to towns in Kosovo, the prime minister said Saturday, blaming Serbian-backed groups. At least eight people were arrested.

Article content

Article content

Prime Minister Albin Kurti said Friday’s explosion in Vrage, 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of the capital Pristina, disrupted water supplies to other cities and major power plants. It followed two other explosions in the previous days at police station buildings and local authorities in the same area in the north of the country, which is home to a majority of ethnic Serbs.

Article content

About 15 to 20 kilograms (30 to 45 pounds) of explosives were used to damage critical infrastructure, according to Kosovo police chief Gazmend Hoxha.

Kurti blamed “official Belgrade and its criminal structures led by Milan Radoičić, supported by Serbian institutions and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.”

Radoičić, a politician and wealthy businessman allied with Serbia’s ruling party and Vučić, was among 45 people charged in Kosovo in connection with a shootout last year in which a Kosovar policeman was killed following a raid by armed Serbian gunmen.

Only three Serbs were arrested and others are at large, including Radoičić, whom Pristina says is protected by Belgrade.

Kosovo police have arrested eight people suspected of being part of the attack, according to Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla.

A large number of weapons, ammunition, military and police uniforms, money and other items were seized in ten areas in the north.

Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Đurić condemned Friday’s blasts but also criticized Kurti’s “nationalist regime” for rushing to “point at Belgrade without evidence.”

Article content

Article content

“We believe that such an early accusation is a deliberate game,” said Đurić. “These baseless allegations undermine constructive dialogue efforts and increase tensions in an already critical situation.”

The European Union and the United States strongly condemned the explosion and demanded that the perpetrators be brought to justice.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell spoke on the phone with Kurti condemning the “horrible act of destroying Kosovo’s public infrastructure” and asked “all stakeholders to fully cooperate with the Kosovo authorities.”

The US ambassador in Pristina said “these acts of violence have no place in a democratic society, and those responsible for these criminal attacks against the legitimate authorities of the Republic of Kosovo must be held accountable.”

Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani, who canceled a trip to Brunei because of the incidents, met with representatives of Western and EU officials to express his concern that “such an attack not only aims to destabilize Kosovo but also represents a serious threat to the stability of the entire region.”

Article content

Kosovo-Serbia relations remain strained despite efforts by the international community to normalize them.

Kosovo was a province of Serbia until a 78-day NATO bombing campaign in 1999 ended the war between Serbian government forces and Kosovo Albanian separatists, which left nearly 13,000 people dead, mostly from Albania, and expelled the Serbian forces. Kosovo declared independence in 2008 unrecognized by Belgrade.

Brussels and Washington are urging both sides to implement the agreements Vučić and Kurti reached in February and March last year. It includes Kosovo’s commitment to establish an Association of Multi-Serbian Municipalities. Serbia is also expected to offer de facto recognition of Kosovo, which Belgrade still considers its province.

The NATO-led international peacekeeping force known as KFOR has increased its presence in Kosovo after last year’s unrest.

KFOR has been providing security at the water pipeline and its surroundings since Friday night, according to the statement.

_____

Lazar Semini reported from Tirana, Albania. Dušan Stojanović contributed to this report from Belgrade, Serbia.

_____

Follow Semini at https://x.com/lsemini

Article content