Albanian Paramilitaries Put Up Illegal Checkpoints in Serbian Kosovo Province
Armed and masked Albanian paramilitaries are setting up illegal checkpoints in Metohija, the western part of Serbian Kosovo province.
Masked & Armed Albanian Paramilitary Groups Clash with Police in Metohija Region
PRISTINA, Serbia, December 7 (Tanjug) — During the past several days Kosovo police clashed with a group of armed and masked men on the territory of Metohija (western part of Serbian Kosovo province) who on several occasions put up illegal checkpoints and inspected vehicle traffic, police officials in Kosovo province said today.
According to the regional police administrators based in Pec, masked and armed men began to put up checkpoints on rural roads during the night.
Police reacted quickly when the gunfire was reported by citizens. Near the village of Grcin close to Djakovica, there was an exchange of gunfire between approximately ten masked men and strong police forces. No one was hurt and several of the masked men disappeared into the nearby woods.
The appearance of Albanian paramilitaries in the western part of Kosovo and Metohija was last recorded more than a year ago. The region where they put control checkpoints then was in the same location as now, along the route between Decani and Djakovica.
At that time one armed group near Djakovica stopped and disarmed a KFOR military patrol. This was followed by a major campaign by international troops to find the paramilitaries but they were unsuccessful.
After several days of reports of armed and masked groups of men, the command of the international military forces in Kosovo confirmed their presence.
Informed sources state that the appearance of Albanian paramilitary groups is tied to the increasingly uncertain resolution of the Kosovo crisis and “negotiations” led by international UN envoy Martti Ahtisaari.
“Groups of armed and masked men in Kosovo and Metohija are not a novelty, and with their latest appearance they are trying to influence the negotiating process of finding a solution for the status of Kosovo province,” Serbian political analyst Milivoje Mihajlovic said on Thursday.