By Xinhua
Pristina : A group of ethnic Serbs Friday broke into the closed Mitrovica district court in northern Kosovo, which had been under the control of the UN mission known as UNMIK since 1999, the police said.
“UNMIK police units did their best to stop (the crowd), but protesters put women in the front line, and hurled stones and metal bars from the background,” said Bekim Hoti, spokesman for the Kosovo Police Service (KPS).
Supported by hundreds of local residents, former court workers broke into the UN court, which was closed after Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence Feb 17.
Since then, Serb employees working before 1999 have been protesting demanding the court be reopened.
Police officials said they were awaiting a political solution to the problem.
Serb workers’ representative Miodrag Ralic said the situation is a result of a failure to find a solution in the negotiations with UNMIK representatives.