The new tensions in northern Kosovo risk precipitating the situation in the heart of the Balkans, with the ethnic conflict which yesterday recorded a worrying escalation which resulted in violent clashes between soldiers of the KFOR (the NATO force) and Serbian demonstrators who oppose the new mayors of Albanian ethnicity entered service in the four major municipalities in the north with a Serb majority.

Serious incidents took place in Zvecan , where the KFOR soldiers confronted the Serbian demonstrators who had been besieging the town hall for hours to prevent the new Albanian mayor from taking office.

In the harsh clashes, the military made extensive use of truncheons, tear gas and deafening bombs, while the Serbs responded with a heavy throwing of stones, bottles, Molotov cocktails and other objects . The toll is very heavy, with dozens of NATO soldiers injured, 14 of whom are Italians , from the 9th L'Aquila Alpine Regiment.

At first there was talk of 41 soldiers involved but in the evening the KFOR command reported 34 wounded soldiers of various nationalities. Three of our compatriots suffered fairly serious injuries - mostly burns from the Molotov cocktails and fractures - but they are not life threatening.

The commander of the KFOR mission, the Italian general Angelo Michele Ristuccia , expressing his solidarity with the wounded soldiers, said he is following the evolution of the situation firsthand and assured that the NATO contingent remains "impartial".

Giorgia Meloni - who condemned the attack as "unacceptable and irresponsible", warning that no other actions of the kind will be tolerated , the ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense, Antonio Tajani and Guido Crosetto, expressed the closeness of the institutions to the wounded soldiers and best wishes for a speedy recovery.

«It is essential - Meloni underlined - to avoid further unilateral actions by the Kosovar authorities and for all the parties involved to immediately take a step back, contributing to the easing of tensions . The Italian government's commitment to peace and stability in the Western Balkans is maximum and we will continue to work with our allies".

On the other hand, 52 Serbs were injured in the clashes in Zvecan . And Serbian President Vucic accused KFOR of failing to defend the Serbian population who contest the election of new ethnic Albanian mayors which took place in the local vote on April 23, a consultation boycotted by the Serbs and whose legitimacy is also contested by Belgrade due to the extremely low voter turnout, just over 3% .

It is unacceptable, the Serbs argue, for mayors representing 2% of the population to govern cities whose inhabitants are 98% ethnic Serbs. Pristina, emphasizing the regularity of the April 23 vote, points the finger at Belgrade and the illegal structures it maintains in northern Kosovo. Structures, he maintains, that would have turned into criminal gangs that attack the Kosovar police, the KFOR military and journalists . The Serbian authorities for their part accuse Pristina of wanting to occupy the north with the aim of expelling the local Serb population.

In the evening Vucic, on live TV, confirmed the dispatch of troops to the border with Kosovo . And for today, new protests are announced. A wall-to-wall situation that seems to have no way out.

(Unioneonline/L)

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