Kosovo police have shut down four social work center offices in North Mitrovica amid suspicions of “illegal activities related to the electoral process,” Top Channel reported on Wednesday.
In a statement, police said they had raided the centers in three Serb-majority municipalities—Zubin Potok, Leposaviq, and Zvečan—adding that no arrests were made during the operation. Deputy regional police director Veton Elshani told Top Channel that authorities suspect the centers were involved in “document forgery.”
The operation was authorized by the Basic Prosecution Office in Mitrovica following the February 8 arrest of four employees of the Zubin Potok social work center on suspicion of “violating voters’ will,” police said. The officials allegedly called and pressured citizens on how to vote, conditioning social welfare payments on their choices, the statement added.
The largest Serb party in Kosovo, Lista Srpska, condemned the operation, accusing Prime Minister Albin Kurti of “once again attacking everything Serbian.”
In a statement, the party described the raid as “illegal and anti-Serb” and urged the international community to condemn what it called “moves that endanger thousands of welfare beneficiaries.”
“The party leadership will meet with the affected employees today and provide all possible support,” Lista Srpska said in its statement, as quoted by Top Channel.