A fight broke out in the Kosovo parliament after an opposition member poured water on Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti during an angry debate, writes Reuters.
Kosovo’s opposition has long accused the prime minister of fueling tensions in the country’s north, affecting relations with Kosovo’s allies in the West.
The unrest in the north escalated once again after local elections in April were almost ignored by the Serbs, demanding the implementation of a decade-old agreement on greater autonomy. 90% of the population of Kosovo are ethnic Albanians, and only about 5% are Serbs, most of whom live in the northern part of Kosovo.
On Thursday, the 13th of July, an opposition MP poured water on Kurti and his deputy.
MPs from the ruling party and the opposition intervened, and a fight broke out. Kurti was pushed aside, and the brawl continued until the police intervened.
Major fight in Kosovo’s parliament today pic.twitter.com/Ai2Fk0FPPT
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) July 13, 2023
The debate that caused the fights touched on an audio recording published by the online media Nacionale, in which you can hear a conversation between the chairman of the Kurti party, Mimoza Kusari-Lila, and the then Serbian MP Slavko Simic, which took place last June.
In the recording, Kusari-Lila can be heard saying she had previously spoken with Milan Radojcic, a US-sanctioned official of Serbian descent.
On Wednesday, the 12th of July, Kurti agreed with the EU to reduce the presence of the Kosovo police in the north, and will also try to reduce the tension in other ways. On the 29th of May, 93 NATO peacekeepers were injured in clashes with Serbian protesters. Doctors informed that 52 Serbs were also injured.
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