Illegal roads from Kosovo to Serbia

“We are blocking ourselves”, says one of the citizens travelling these days from Kosovo's north to Serbia, via alternative roads, which include illegal border crossings.

Since December 10th, when groups of local Serbs have set up barricades in northern Kosovo, blocking roads leading to two border crossings with Serbia, Jarinje and Brnjak, many must find their own solutions.

The road through Mount Rogozna is one of the options.

Instead of the main highway from North Mitrovica, through Leposaviqi, to the Jarinje border point, it now travels through Banjsca ʹthe municipality of Zvecani and Mount Rogoza, on the street known as the Street to the spring.

Through the villages of Bare and Brdjani, it is reached in Novi Pazar and later in the Rashka two municipalities in southwest Serbia.

This road, which is one of several alternative roads in the north, between Kosovo and Serbia, includes an illegal border crossing because there is no official border crossing.

However, on exit from Kosovo territory, the Serbian Police checkpoint has been located at an improvised facility.

In this country, police legitimize travelers, as do regular border crossings.

In addition to cars, private companies from Mitrovica and Weiru pass buses twice a day. As REL has learned, buses are almost full of passengers.

Talking to some of them reveals that most travel to Serbia because of obligations, whether health or labour.

Kosovo authorities have said they have the capacity to remove barricades, but that they are giving the NATO mission KFOR time to do so peacefully.

KFOR has said it is carefully monitoring the situation in northern Kosovo and that the mission has skills and personnel to ensure freedom of movement, in line with its mandate.

However, the mission has called on all to refrain from the provocative demonstration of force, in order to ensure the security of all communities”.

Goran Rakiq, chairman of the Serbian List ʹ the largest party of Serbs in Kosovo, supported by Belgrade, has said the <x0-receta for removing barricades is the release of all Serbs arrested, the withdrawal of all police units from northern Kosovo and the removal of all secret lists for the murder of Serbs”.

Rakiq has not offered any evidence that would support his claims, but Kosovo officials have dismissed several previous claims by Serbian authorities that the Government of Kosovo, led by Albin Kurti, has sent special forces to the north and “targets the persecution of Serbs” from that part.