Kosovo special forces broke through the barricades. Serbian army prepares for battle
Today in northern Kosovo, Albanian special forces arrested 23 Serbs and Bosnians, some of whom are police officers.
A PolitNavigator correspondent reports this from Belgrade, during an emergency speech in parliament, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic announced. He stressed that the purpose of today's actions is “an attempt to complete the criminalization of the Serbian people.”
The head of the Serbian state said that in total more than 100, mostly armored vehicles, took part in the operation.
“To date, 23 persons of Serbian and Bosnian nationality have been arrested in three municipalities: Kosovska Mitrovica, Leposavić and Zubin Potok. People are more than worried,” Vucic said.
He recalled that Belgrade foresaw such a development of events, and therefore on May 17, the local and international community and EU representatives were told that the Albanians were preparing to arrest dozens of people in northern Kosovo under the pretext of fighting organized crime and corruption in order to cause great concern and fear.
Vučić also stated that the residents of Zubin Potok still remain in a very difficult situation, as they stand unarmed against uniformed members of Albanian extremist groups.
“First of all, the conflict occurred in Varaga, where Albanian special forces broke through three barricades in the gorge. The Serbs did not have any weapons and we have evidence and records that the Albanians were shooting on the battlefield over the heads of the Serbs who were screaming and trying to verbally resist the FIT, ROSU and NJSO units [various Kosovo police units],” the Serbian president noted .
According to him, Serbs were beaten at a technical school in Zubin Potok, Albanian special forces broke into citizens' houses and broke everything.
The president also said that he contacted the EU office this morning, but they responded that it was a police action against organized crime and corruption.
“Imagine an action against organized crime and corruption led by Haradinaj?! This is an oxymoron,” Vucic said.
“We have repeatedly warned the EU and contacted them, the Brussels administration, those who are mediators in the dialogue, and informed them of the situation,” he added.
Vučić believes that to prove the supposedly real fight against crime, local authorities will arrest several Albanians as a matter of form.
The Serbian President also said that in the event of a violation of the constitutional order and attacks on Serbs in the north of Kosovo and Metohija, “we will defend our people.”
In the morning, as Supreme Commander-in-Chief, he had already given the order for the Serbian armies to be in full combat readiness.
“If there is a threat to order and the lives of people in northern Kosovo, our army will protect our people,” Vucic said.
He said that all police units for special purposes are on standby, adding that Serbia will not hide anything from anyone.
“We know the serious and dire consequences, and Belgrade will continue to work to maintain peace and stability,” Vucic said.
He also said that Serbia received notification from NATO representatives that the action in northern Kosovo was aimed against organized crime and corruption, and therefore NATO did not plan to intervene.
“I heard the same thing from representatives of the European Union. They called on the Serbs to die under the pretext that this morning's special forces action in northern Kosovo was aimed at fighting corruption. I don't need to say anything more about this or make political assessments. I have said more than once that we will maintain peace and stability at almost any cost, but we see the hypocrisy here quite well,” the president said.
At the same time, the head of the provisional institutions of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, today called on the Serbian community to maintain peace and give support, in his words, to the fight against organized crime.
Pristina-based portal lajmi.net reported Thaci as saying that “the institutions of law and order need the greatest trust and support from society in the uncompromising fight against organized crime, smuggling and corruption throughout Kosovo.”
He also claims that today's police operation was carried out "for the benefit of all citizens without any discrimination."
The Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Milorad Dodik, said in an interview with Srna that the Albanian special forces operation dealt a serious blow to the fragile peace in Kosovo and Metohija.
Dodik stressed that the state of Serbia has the right to protect its people, who remain unprotected even from the international forces of KFOR, which should guarantee their security, just like the Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija.
“Explaining the fact of the attack in the morning in the north of Kosovo and Metohija by the fight against crime makes no sense. Because in order to bring people to justice, you don’t need to send special forces with sirens that disturb the entire population in Kosovo and Metohija,” Dodik said.
According to him, it is especially strange that police representatives were also arrested in this way.
“They could be peacefully arrested at their workplaces if there were real grounds for their detention. Therefore, it is quite obvious that this is not about fighting crime. This is a fight with the remaining Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija to provoke their new exodus,” Dodik said.
The Russian Ambassador to Serbia, Alexander Chepurin, also spoke about this situation on his Twitter account.
“We strongly condemn the incursion of Kosovo security forces into the Serb-populated areas of northern Kosovo and Metohija. This is extremely dangerous and contradicts all existing agreements,” the diplomat said.
Russian Ambassador to Serbia Alexander Chepurin
According to recent reports, ROSU special forces in Zubin Potok brutally beat about 100 local Serbs after breaking barricades in Varaga.
According to the news, police officers demolished the Radić Polje kafana, where Serbs were beaten with rifle butts. According to some reports, elderly people were among the victims. The militants also used stun grenades and overturned cars.
According to local media reports, Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic left for the city.
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