Local Serb leadership and Kosovo police clashed symbolically over the new street signage within minutes of its installation. The incident underlines the severe friction over the central government’s renaming of 88 local roads.
The institutional dispute over new street names in North Mitrovica escalated into direct physical pushback today when the municipality’s Serb Mayor, Milan Radojević, personally marched to the entrance of the town to cover the newly erected signs with white cloths.
Radojević stated that the central government’s unilateral move to install the signs was completely “illegal.” In a swift act of political defiance, the mayor and local officials covered the fresh bilingual signs bearing the names of “Isa Boletini” and “Zoran Đinđić” at the main entrance roundabout.
The political blockade, however, lasted only minutes. Heavily deployed Kosovo Police officers stationed at the site immediately intervened, stepping forward to strip away the cloths and restore visibility to the state-installed signs.
Central vs. Local Overhaul
The brief altercation occurred shortly after Fitore Pacoli, the central government’s Acting Minister of Spatial Planning, announced the launch of the final “technical phase” to physically install signs for 88 renamed streets across the municipality.
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ The Flashpoint at the Roundabout │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 1. Ministry installs "Isa Boletini" & "Zoran Đinđić" │
│ signs under a central mandate. │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 2. Mayor Milan Radojević covers the signs with white │
│ cloths, declaring the move illegal. │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 3. Kosovo Police immediately strip the covers off. │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 4. Static 24-hour police guard established at the site.│
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
While Minister Pacoli maintains the overhaul is fully backed by a legitimate prior decision from the Municipal Assembly, local Serb leadership argues the move lacks local democratic consensus and bypasses active legal challenges currently pending in court.
Kosovo Police have since reinforced their presence at the roundabout, establishing a static guard to prevent further tampering with the signage as tensions remain high just four days ahead of national elections.
