18 March 2008—Two Filipino police officers serving with the United Nations mission in Kosovo were among dozens of peacekeepers injured in the violence that broke out in the volatile northern city of Mitrovica, the Philippine Mission to the United Nations reported.

In its report to Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto G. Romulo, the Philippine Mission said the two Philippine National Police (PNP) officers, who it declined to identify pending notification of their next of kin, were injured in the riots that came shortly after UN and NATO peacekeepers stormed a UN court that was seized last week by Kosovo-Serbs.

Ambassador Hilario G. Davide, Jr., Philippine Permanent Representative to the United Nations, said the Philippine Mission is closely monitoring the situation in Kosovo and is in touch with Senior Supt. Dencio Duldulao, commander of the 40-member Philippine National Police (PNP) Peacekeeping Contingent, and Supt. Romeo Pillonar, the senior PNP officer in Mitrovica.

Ambassador Davide said the two officers, who are assigned to the Prisoner Escort Unit (PEU) of the Specialized Police Unit -under the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), were part of a three-vehicle convoy that was transporting detainees when they were blocked and attacked by an undetermined number of Serbs along St. Peter Street near the North Mitrovica police station at around 7 a.m. on Monday, 17 March 2008.

Ambassador Davide said the two officers were dragged out of their vehicle by an undetermined number of Kosovo Serbs after they refused to release the detainees they were transporting. Reports said the mob was able to free 10 of the detainees.

The two officers, who sustained bruises and other injuries, were brought to a UN hospital where they were reported to be in stable condition.

A number of UN peacekeepers were injured when Serbs fought off with gunfire, grenades and stones UNMIK and NATO peacekeepers who stormed the UN court that was taken over last Friday by Serbs protesting the unilateral declaration of Kosovo's independence by the Kosovo Albanian majority.

Ambassador Davide said that although 18 of the 40 PNP officers in Kosovo were sent to Mitrovica to augment UN police officers there, no Filipino was involved in the actual takeover of the UN court. END