This week, the tense situation between Serbia and Kosovo has further escalated following clashes between ethnic Serbs and Kosovo police forces.
The incident has now resulted in Serbian royal reactions. Several Kosovo police officers and ethnic Serb civilians have been injured in clashes that broke out during raids in the northern town of Mitrovica, an area populated mainly by Kosovo’s Serb minority.
Following the latest altercations, Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia has issued the following statement: “With great sadness and disturbance, I have received the news that Serbs who live under extremely difficult conditions on our sacred land, Kosovo and Metohija, are again under the attack of brutality and violence from the institutions of so-called “State of Kosovo.”
“We can not stand silent to the casualties of our people, who are trying to live in their centuries-old homes. All they want is what every person in this world deserves – a chance to have a normal, peaceful life in the place where their ancestors lived for ages. And that fundamental human right is constantly endangering Serbs in Kosovo from the institutions in Pristina. Many times in the past, I visited Kosovo and saw the pain of our people. This is something that will not be tolerated, and nobody can remain silent when the lives and wellbeing of our people are being endangered again and again. It must stop!
“I appeal to all members of the international community to stop this senseless violence and not to be silent about the suffering of the Serbian people. These proud women and men have suffered so much, defending their right to live in the place which was, is, and always will be in the heart of every member of our nation, which is the birthplace of our country and the essence of our spiritual being. This tormenting of innocent people and this mad violence have to end now!”
The clashes are just the latest incident in the ongoing border dispute between Serbia and Kosovo that escalated last month regarding vehicle licence plates. The situation in northern Kosovo is now volatile, and it has prompted an angry response from Belgrade. Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic called for NATO, which has 3,000 peacekeepers in Kosovo, to restore order and prevent chaos in the region.
