Kosovo town mayor urges Belgrade to send back troops

KOSOVSKA MITROVICA Kosovska Mitrovica Mayor Krstimir Pantic on Tuesday called on the Serbian authorities "to finally start taking care of their own people in Kosovo". Pantic late on Monday accused NATO and EU missions in Kosovo of "being behind" a hand grenade attack on a Serb home in northern Kosovska Mitrovica that injured two children. Kosovo town mayor urges Belgrade to send back troops The mayor also urged the local residents to end all communication with members of both missions. Speaking as he was seeing off the children and their parents - who on Tuesday departed for Belgrade - Pantic said that representatives of the international community are keeping silent regarding the incident, and that they did not wish to talk to the representatives of Serbs from northern Kosovo. Pantic, who is an official of the SNS party and deputy chief of the Serbian Government's Office for Kosovo and Metohija, accused the missions of having the goal and task of occupying the area, and creating another state in the Balkans for Albanians. "The price that we will pay will not be of our choosing, but we will allow neither the Albanians, nor KFOR and EULEX, to occupy northern Kosovo and create another state for Albanians," he said, and called on these mission to start implementing the mandate under which they deployed in Kosovo, "and stop acting as logistics support for terrorists". The mayor noted that this was a message that he was sending in his own name, and on behalf of the citizens of Kosovska Mitrovica and Serbs who live in the province. Pantic stressed that Serbs did not enjoy safety not only in Kosovska Mitrovica but elsewhere in Kosovo and Metohija, and that the number of victims since 1999 confirmed this - describing at the same time "the international community" as being "without strength and taking the side of Kosovo Albanians". Pantic sent another message, this time to the Serbian government, urging it to "finally start taking care about its own people in Kosovo and Metohija" - and, in line with UN Security Council Resolution 1244, send a number of military and police personnel back to Kosovo in order to protect its citizens. Meanwhile, the doctors in Kosovska Mitrovica said that the two children were stable and not in need of surgery, but that the parents wished for their treatment to continue in Belgrade. The Kosovo police, KPS, on Tuesday arrested a Serb man who they said had a hand grenade in his apartment "similar to the one used in the attack" against the Vucetic family, his neighbors. Krstimir Pantic (Beta, file) Beta Tanjug

Kosovo town mayor urges Belgrade to send back troops

The mayor also urged the local residents to end all communication with members of both missions.

Speaking as he was seeing off the children and their parents - who on Tuesday departed for Belgrade - Pantić said that representatives of the international community are keeping silent regarding the incident, and that they did not wish to talk to the representatives of Serbs from northern Kosovo.

Pantić, who is an official of the SNS party and deputy chief of the Serbian Government's Office for Kosovo and Metohija, accused the missions of having the goal and task of occupying the area, and creating another state in the Balkans for Albanians.

"The price that we will pay will not be of our choosing, but we will allow neither the Albanians, nor KFOR and EULEX, to occupy northern Kosovo and create another state for Albanians," he said, and called on these mission to start implementing the mandate under which they deployed in Kosovo, "and stop acting as logistics support for terrorists".

The mayor noted that this was a message that he was sending in his own name, and on behalf of the citizens of Kosovska Mitrovica and Serbs who live in the province.

Pantić stressed that Serbs did not enjoy safety not only in Kosovska Mitrovica but elsewhere in Kosovo and Metohija, and that the number of victims since 1999 confirmed this - describing at the same time "the international community" as being "without strength and taking the side of Kosovo Albanians".

Pantić sent another message, this time to the Serbian government, urging it to "finally start taking care about its own people in Kosovo and Metohija" - and, in line with UN Security Council Resolution 1244, send a number of military and police personnel back to Kosovo in order to protect its citizens.

Meanwhile, the doctors in Kosovska Mitrovica said that the two children were stable and not in need of surgery, but that the parents wished for their treatment to continue in Belgrade.

The Kosovo police, KPS, on Tuesday arrested a Serb man who they said had a hand grenade in his apartment "similar to the one used in the attack" against the Vučetić family, his neighbors.