An explosion damaged a vital canal for two thermal power plants in Kosovo on Friday, November 29, threatening their energy supplies, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said, condemning an “attack” he blamed on Serbia.
“This is a criminal and terrorist attack aimed at destroying our critical infrastructure,” the Prime Minister said during a press conference called on Friday night.
“The attack was carried out by professionals. We believe it came from Serbian-led gangs,” he added.
power plants
The explosion of the canal, which supplies water to two coal-fired power plants for their cooling systems, which represent Kosovo’s main source of electricity, occurred near the town of Zubin Potok, in the north of the country.
If the damage is not repaired, part of Kosovo risks being left without electricity on Saturday morning, the Prime Minister said.
He did not give details on the extent of the damage suffered by the canal, which connects the Serbian-majority north of Kosovo with the capital Pristina, also partially supplied with drinking water by this canal.
Images published by local media show a gap in one side of the canal through which water is flowing strongly.
Unrecognized independence
The United States, through its embassy in Pristina, strongly condemned “the attack on critical infrastructure in Kosovo.”
“We are closely monitoring the situation (…) and have offered all our support to the Kosovo government to ensure that those responsible for this criminal attack are identified and held accountable,” the embassy continues on its social networks.
Tensions between Kosovo and Serbia have persisted since the war between Serbian forces and Kosovars in the late 1990s.
Kosovo declared independence in 2008, a move that Serbia refuses to recognize, encouraging Serbs to reject their allegiance to Pristina.
Serbia has maintained so-called “parallel” public institutions, schools and hospitals in Serbian areas of Kosovo. But the recent dismantling of these institutions by Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s government has shaken this system and reignited tensions.
Friday’s attack follows a series of violent incidents in northern Kosovo, where Serbs are in the majority, including grenades thrown at a municipal building and a police station earlier this week.
Source: BFM TV
