Blast damages canal feeding Kosovo's main power plants, PM calls explosion 'terrorist attack'
The canal runs from the Serb-majority north of Kosovo to the capital Pristina and also supplies drinking water. Photograph:( Reuters )
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No injuries were reported in the explosion and the cause of the blast was not yet known. PM Albin Kurti said that if the damage was not repaired, part of Kosovo could be without electricity.
No injuries were reported in the explosion and the cause of the blast was not yet known. PM Albin Kurti said that if the damage was not repaired, part of Kosovo could be without electricity.
A blast on Friday (Nov 29) evening damaged a canal supplying water to Kosovo's two main coal-fired power plants, Prime Minister Albin Kurti said. Addressing a press conference, Prime Minister Kurti said, "This is a criminal and terrorist attack aimed at damaging our critical infrastructure."
"The attack was carried out by professionals. We believe it comes from gangs directed by Serbia," he added.
A report by the news agency AFP said that the blast, which hit a canal supplying water to cooling systems at two power plants that supply most of Kosovo's electricity, occurred near the town of Zubin Potok in the country's troubled north.
No injuries reported
No injuries were reported in the explosion and the cause of the blast was not yet known. PM Kurti said that if the damage was not repaired, part of Kosovo could be without electricity.
The canal runs from the Serb-majority north of Kosovo to the capital Pristina and also supplies drinking water. A report by the news agency Reuters said that the explosion impacted the supplies of drinking water.
'Water supply must be halted to fix problem'
Faruk Mujka, the head of the water company Ibar-Lepenci, told local media that an explosive device was thrown into the canal and damaged the wall of a bridge.
He said the water supply, which also feeds drinking water to the capital Pristina, must be halted to fix the problem as soon as possible since it was the main channel for supplying Kosovo Energy Corporation (KEK), the country's main power provider.
Reuters reported that earlier on Friday, the Kosovo police announced increased security measures after two recent attacks where hand grenades were hurled at a police station and municipality building in northern Kosovo where ethnic Serbians live.
It was not clear if the incidents were linked.
Serbia condemns canal explosion
Serbia on Saturday strongly condemned the blast in Kosovo and rejected Pristina's claim that it (Serbia was behind the attack).
"Such destructive actions are unacceptable and threaten the fragile stability we are striving to maintain," Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric said, calling Pristina's allegation of Serbian involvement "baseless" and a "deliberate diversion."
(With inputs from agencies)
