Kosovo police officers guard a checkpoint on the road near the village of Banjska following an attack, in Kosovo, on Sunday. At least one policeman was killed and another was wounded in an attack Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti blamed on armed personnel coming from Serbia. Photo by EPA-EFE
Sept. 24 (UPI) — A police officer was killed and at least three suspects were shot dead Sunday after dozens of armed marauders took over a small village in northern Kosovo before ambushing authorities who responded to the scene.
Kosovo Police were still locked in a standoff in Banjska, near the Serbian border, after they said a band of 30 professional criminals attacked the village in the middle of the night before barricading themselves in the town monastery at sunrise.
Officials said the shooters moved through the city with military precision and used the natural environment to conceal themselves from responding units.
Authorities surrounded the Serbia Orthodox Church, where the militants remained holed up, and where some faithful had locked themselves inside when gunfire first erupted.
Prime Minister Albin Kurti blamed “Serbia-sponsored criminals,” and called for them to surrender in a statement on Twitter.
The motivation for the attack was unclear, but violence has increased in the region since a disputed election in May and as political talks with European Union chiefs dissolved in recent months.
Security forces set up a perimeter around the village to box in the gunmen, who wore masks and uniforms while armed to the teeth with heavy weapons, grenades, and other tactical equipment, including rocket launchers and armored vehicles, police said in a statement.
Police also closed two border crossings in Jarinje and Bërnjak, and warned travelers to avoid the area.
A NATO peacekeeping force stationed in the region told local authorities it was prepared to move in if necessary.
In recent months, Kosovo and Serbia have been working to normalize relations following the breakup of Yugoslavia and other Balkan nations in the late 1990s — which has led to ongoing regional territorial disputes.