Kosovo authorities, accompanied by police support, have taken control of the National Employment Service (NSZ) building in North Mitrovica.
Early this morning, officials from the North Mitrovica municipality entered the premises, assisted by Kosovo Police, while three police patrols and one KFOR vehicle maintained a visible presence outside.
The entrance to the building was locked, and a sticker marked „Municipal Property – Directorate for Inspection Affairs“ was affixed to the door.
Inside the building, the Chief of Cabinet for the North Mitrovica municipality, Visar Syla, was present alongside municipal staff. Employees of the NSZ were also inside during the takeover.
As has been the case with other recent institutional takeovers, the building’s locks were changed.
During the first half-hour of the operation, at least five citizens arrived seeking services from the employment office, only to be informed that it was no longer operational. Furthermore, the Serbian flag and the sign displaying the name of the institution were removed from the building’s facade.
Serbian Officials Respond
Petar Petković, the Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, reacted swiftly on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
He condemned the takeover, emphasizing that tens of thousands of people depend on the services provided by the NSZ.
Petković criticized both Kosovo authorities and the European Union, asking, „Where are you, and what are you even doing?“
„Kurti’s police are currently storming the National Employment Service in North Mitrovica, upon which tens of thousands depend. Kurti wants the expulsion of the Serbian people and the provocation of conflict! EU officials, where are you and what are you even doing?“ Petković wrote.
A Broader Pattern of Takeovers
This event marks the latest in a series of takeovers by Kosovo authorities of Serbian-run institutions in northern Kosovo. Two days ago, in North Mitrovica, Kosovo’s Regional Water Company from South Mitrovica seized control of the Serbian Water Administration building and its pumping station.
On the same day, the Sports, Youth, and Specialized Services Institution in North Mitrovica, which also housed the Kosovo and Metohija Sports Association and the „Kosovski Božur“ Cultural Society, was taken over by Kosovo authorities.
Yesterday, control was also asserted over the regional water supply in Zubin Potok, as well as the Sports Center and City Museum in North Mitrovica.
Preuzimanje i objavljivanje tekstova sa portala KoSSev nije dozvoljeno bez navođenja izvora. Hvala na poštovanju etike novinarske profesije.
