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EU: Declaring two organizations in the north of Kosovo as terrorists, a unilateral step

2023-07-06 08:58:32Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
EU: Declaring two organizations in the north of Kosovo as terrorists, a
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The European Union said that the decision of the Government of Kosovo to declare the "Civil Defense" and the "Northern Brigade" as terrorist organizations is a "unilateral step" that, according to the bloc, does not contribute to reducing tensions.

On June 29, the Government of Kosovo declared these two organizations as terrorists. They are believed to operate in the north of Kosovo and number hundreds of members from the ranks of the Serbian community, who are the majority in this area.

"This designation [designation as a terrorist organization] is a unilateral step and does not contribute to the escalation of the situation and finding a way to address the existing problems in a sustainable way," said the European bloc's spokesman, Peter Stano, in a response to Radio Free Europe.

Stano added that the leaders of the 27 EU member states, during a meeting held last week, called for an immediate escalation of the situation in the north of Kosovo.

"We repeat the call for both parties to refrain from any action or rhetoric that could lead to further escalation of tensions and to urgently take steps to de-escalate the current situation in the north of Kosovo in line with the proposal made by the representative of high, Josep Borrell, on June 22 and the EU statement of June 3", said Stano.

Even the US Department of State has previously told Radio Free Europe that Kosovo has not coordinated with them or with other Western partners regarding the decision taken on the "Civil Defense" and the "Northern Brigade".

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, has argued that the "Civil Defense" and the "North Brigade" present a "serious and direct threat to the constitutional order and security in Kosovo".

According to him, these two organizations have carried out actions "with terrorist elements", such as: armed attacks against members of the Kosovo Police, members of the European Union Mission for Rule of Law - EULEX and soldiers of the NATO mission in Kosovo, KFOR.

The authorities in Kosovo have clarified that the decision to declare these two organizations as terrorists will not affect anyone who may have committed criminal offenses before this decision.

According to the law in Kosovo, when organizations are declared terrorist, their activity is immediately banned. Any further activity of theirs would carry serious legal consequences.

Since the end of the war in 1999, illegal structures, supported and financed by the state of Serbia, have been operating in Kosovo.

One of them is "Civil Defense", which was published in 2011.

"Civil Defense" in Serbia operates within the Ministry of Internal Affairs and its role is to react to emergency situations of danger, such as floods, earthquakes and the like.

Its extinction is foreseen in the agreement reached between Kosovo and Serbia in 2015, within the framework of the dialogue for the normalization of relations.

Meanwhile, in August 2022, graffiti appeared in the northern part of Kosovo with a logo and the inscription "Northern Brigade" in Serbian.

Apart from the graffiti with its logo on several streets and various objects in the northern part of Kosovo, it is not known who is behind it, if there are active members and what is their role.

The declaration of "Civil Defense" and "North Brigade" as terrorist organizations comes at a time when tensions in the north of Kosovo have increased.

Since the end of May, Serbs in Zveçan, Leposaviq and Zubin Potok have been objecting to the new Albanian mayors working from municipal buildings. They are also demanding the withdrawal of special units of the Kosovo Police from the north.

Since that time, several incidents with stun grenades and hand grenades have been recorded in the north, and on May 29 in Zveçan, Serbian protesters clashed with KFOR members. Dozens of people from both sides were injured from these clashes.

The international community has asked Kosovo and Serbia to take immediate steps to reduce tensions in the north. Kosovo is being asked to organize new elections in the four northern municipalities, while Serbia is being asked to convince the Serbs to participate in the election process./REL


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