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Northern Kosovo clashes raise tension
Six people injured, including two NATO peacekeepers, after Serb protest over roadblock removal led to exchange of fire.
NATO troops reportedly fired at protesters, after being shot at and pelted by stones
At least four Serbs and two NATO soldiers were injured in a gunfight in Northern Kosovo as NATO Kosovo Force attempted to dismantle Serb roadblocks.
Reports said soldiers from the NATO-led contingent had fired rubber bullets or live rounds and tear gas after rioters threw stones at a roadblock near the town of Zvecan in a Serb-dominated northern area of Kosovo.
Oliver Ivanovic, the official dealing with Kosovo in Serbia's outgoing government, said four Serbs had been injured.
KFOR said two soldiers were wounded in the incident and one of them had been evacuated in stable condition.
"KFOR will not allow the situation to escalate and will use a proportional level of force necessary to maintain a safe and secure environment," said NATO spokesperson in Kosovo Uwe Nowitzki. He said that the operation to remove the roadblocks continued.
Several hundred Serbs have reportedly gathered in the village of Rudare to protect barricades, and fighting began when KFOR troops in armored personnel carriers moved in.
A Reuters witness said KFOR troops from Germany and the US received reinforcements after initial clashes and were deployed on hills overlooking Rudare. Several NATO helicopters were also flying over the area.
Dragisa Milovic, the mayor of Zvecan, said KFOR had refused to allow Serb medical personnel to help wounded Serbs.
Health authorities in the Serb-controlled north of the city of Mitrovica said a number of people also received minor injuries.
Serbians began setting up road blocks in the area last year to prevent the ethnic Albanian government in Kosovo's capital from extending control over the Serb-dominated region.
KFOR said it had started removing roadblocks to "improve freedom of movement" for both its troops and the citizens.
This is not the first incident between Serbs and KFOR soldiers.
At least two Kosovan Serbs and two NATO peacekeepers were injured in a wave of violence in northern Kosovo in November 2011, casting doubts on whether the conflict could be resolved in the near future.
At least 10 people were injured earlier in September, 2011 in clashes at the Jarinje checkpoint in northern Kosovo.
