The U.S. Ambassador to Kosovo, Jeffrey Hovenier, stated on Friday that American agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) are directly involved in the investigation in Kosovo to identify those responsible for the attack on the Ibër-Lepenc canal.
The Ibër-Lepenc canal was attacked on November 29 in the village of Varragë, located in the Zubin Potok municipality – a Serb-majority municipality in the north of the country.
The Ibër-Lepenc canal supplies water from the Ujman Lake to the entire northern region of Kosovo, including the areas of Mitrovica, Pristina and surrounding areas, as well as the Kosovo Energy Corporation for cooling its power plants.
Hovenier, the outgoing ambassador, said in an interview with Klan Kosova TV that investigations to identify the perpetrators are ongoing, and the U.S. is assisting in this process.
“We have brought the FBI’s support here to Kosovo to work directly and full-time with law enforcement authorities to identify the responsible parties,” Hovenier said, reiterating his condemnation of the attack.
At present, he stated that he cannot determine who is behind the attack.
Kosovo Police reported that the attack involved explosives weighing up to 20 kilograms.
Kosovo has blamed Serbia for the attack, calling it a terrorist act, while the Serbian government has denied any involvement.
According to Kosovo authorities, this was the most serious attack on the country’s critical infrastructure since the 1998/99 war, with damages estimated at around 400,000 euros.
The U.S. Special Representative for the Balkans, Alexander Kasanof, also told Voice of America that the U.S. condemns the attack in the strongest terms.
“What I can say is that such acts are not only horrific but are clearly designed to create instability, and we reject them in the strongest possible way,” Kasanof stated.
In addition to the U.S., the European Union also strongly condemned the attack.
