Kosovo has asked NATO forces for a helicopter to transport an ex-police officer who was detained two weeks ago, since it is impossible to use the roads due to barricades, writes Reuters.
The conflict in Kosovo escalated in November when mayors, local judges, and around 600 policemen belonging to the Serb minority walked off the job in protest against the government’s decision to replace Serbian-issued car registration plates with those issued by Pristina. Tensions rose further when former policeman Dejan Pantic was arrested. After his arrest on the 10th of December, thousands of Serbs participated in protests.
Kosovo’s interior minister said at a press conference in Mitrovica, just a few kilometers from the first barricades:
«He should be in a detention center and not in a police station and that’s why we have asked our international partners to transfer him to an adequate facility.»
The NATO mission is the only force in Kosovo with helicopters and has already assisted in the transfer of nine police officers who needed medical treatment.
The Kosovo side has indicated that its forces could remove the barricades, but it is preferable that the Serbs themselves or NATO forces do it. The Kosovo government has previously indicated that the people making the barricades are armed and any police intervention could harm people on both sides.
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