Following raids in different locations, Kosovo Police on Saturday said they arrested several individuals after an explosion on Friday evening caused significant damage to the Ibër-Lepenc water canal in the northern municipality of Zubin Potok. The canal supplies several towns through the Ujman Lake, as well as the Kosovo Energy Corporation, KEK,  for cooling its power plants, ‘Kosova A’ and ‘Kosova B.’

“Police are investigating [the case]. There have been raids and arrests, [there is] material evidence and all those criminals and terrorists will face justice,” Kurti said during a visit to the scene near Zubin Potok on Saturday.

The number of arrests had not been made public by the end of publication.

On Friday evening, Kurti called a press conference just before midnight and accused Serbia of a “criminal and terrorist attack,” which, according to him, aimed to damage what is possibly the country’s most important infrastructure.

“This is a criminal and terrorist attack aimed at damaging our critical infrastructure, perhaps the most important we have, and it was undoubtedly an attempt to jeopardize the supply of electricity and water in our country,” Kurti stated.

The attack on the Ibër-Lepenc canal was the third within 72 hours in the northern, Serb-majority region, following explosions at a police station and the municipal building in Zvecan.

Diplomatic missions condemned the attack and called for those responsible to be brought to justice.

“We are monitoring the situation closely, will support a comprehensive investigation, and have offered our full support to the Government of Kosovo to ensure that those responsible for this criminal attack are identified and held accountable,” the U.S. Embassy in Prishtina stated.

The explosion came only a few hours after the Kosovo Police announced that they had stepped up security measures all over Kosovo following a few security incidents affecting municipal buildings in the north.

On Saturday morning Artane Rizvanolli, the Minister of Economy, announced that six provisional pipes have been placed at the site of explosion to secure regular energy and water supply as “there is no risk of the power plants being left without water.”

“At the same time, we have coordinated with the Albanian Energy Corporation to secure additional energy to avoid potential reductions,” Rizvanolli continued.

Meanwhile, The Kosovo Security Council has taken emergency measures to mitigate the consequences and to safeguard the country’s critical infrastructure.

“The Security Council has approved additional measures to strengthen the security around critical facilities and services such as bridges, substations, antennas, lakes, canals, etc,” the government statement said.

“The Kosovo Police and the Kosovo Security Force will be activated in the field for this purpose.”

In the Security Council meeting, a possible parallel with a similar attack by Russia on Ukraine was also raised this week.

“The possible connection with the aggressor Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s energy capacities during this week, leaving over a million Ukrainian households without electricity just before winter, was highlighted,” the Government said.

Regarding the accusations by the Kosovo Government, Serbia’s Foreign Minister, Marko Djuric, denied Serbia’s involvement in the attack. .

“Serbia strongly condemns the recent attack on the Ibër-Lepenc canal. This deeply troubling act of sabotage endangers the lives and well-being of many people in the region,” Serbia’s Foreign Minister Marko Djuriq said in a reaction on X.

Albania’s Prime Minister, Edi Rama, called the explosion sabotage and a “serious crime against Kosovo.”

“This criminal act must be investigated and punished as soon as possible with the support of international partners,” he wrote on ‘X.’

Rama called on the European Union to immediately ‘lift the remaining sanctions against Kosovo and to re-engage in a new dialogue format for normalization between Kosovo and Serbia.’ 

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