Kosovo police say one underage Albanian detained over Mitrovica bridge fight
BBC Monitoring Europe (Political) -  September 26, 2006, Tuesday

Excerpt from report by Serbian news agency Beta

Kosovska Mitrovica, 25 September: One underage person was detained at the police station in north Kosovska Mitrovica this evening in connection with a fight near the main bridge across the River Ibar in that town.

Kosovo Police Service [KPS] spokesman Veton Elshani told Beta news agency that three underage Albanians, aged 13 and 14 years, crossed the bridge at around 2155 hours [1955 gmt] this evening and clashed verbally with a group of people gathered on the north, Serb side of the bridge.

Elshani said that "a fight broke out and they pelted each other with rocks".

According to him, one of the three youths, aged 14 years, is making a statement in the police station in the north part of the town.

The bridge in Mitrovica will be closed to pedestrians and vehicles until tomorrow [26 September] morning under an agreement reached between representatives of the UNMIK [UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo] police and the Serb National Council (SNV), SNV chairman in Mitrovica Nebojsa Jovic told Beta news agency.

Another meeting is scheduled for tomorrow morning at which, according to Jovic, the SNV will demand that the bridge remain closed on the grounds that the security situation is unsatisfactory.

After it was agreed to close the bridge, about 100 people who had gathered on the Serb side of the bridge after the fight dispersed peacefully.

Beta has learned from Serb sources in Mitrovica that Aleksandar Curic, aged 41 years, was slightly injured in this evening's fight. [Passage omitted - covered]

Source: Beta news agency, Belgrade, in Serbian 2105 gmt 25 Sep 06

Copyright 2006 British Broadcasting Corporation
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