Kosovo authorities, police take over sports hall in Leposavic

The municipality of Leposavic, led by mayor Lulzim Hetemi, has taken over management of the local sports hall previously operated under the Serbian system. The operation was conducted with the assistance of Kosovo Police, who confirmed their involvement for KoSSev.

“We only provided support to the municipal leadership in assuming control of the municipal sports hall in Leposavic,“ said Veton Elshani, Deputy Commander of the Kosovo Police for the North Region. He noted that the takeover occurred approximately one hour before his statement but could not confirm whether the locks on the building had been changed, reported KoSSev.

Deputy Mayor Marina Bogojevic said that the municipality had assumed only administrative control over the facility, not the building itself. She said that all existing usage arrangements would remain in place, including staff and scheduling for schools and clubs.

“The workers stay, the time slots for students and coaches stay – everything remains the same, except the management, which now belongs to the municipality,” Bogojevic told KoSSev. She identified the previous operator as the Sports and Tourism Organization of Leposavic, functioning under the Serbian system.

Bogojevic did not respond to follow-up questions after the call was interrupted.

This is the latest in a series of similar actions. On May 15, Kosovo authorities took over the sports hall in North Mitrovica under comparable circumstances. Over the past two weeks, nine such facilities have been taken over, impacting at least 12 departments previously operating under Serbian structures.

According to available records, at least 74 institutions affiliated with Serbia have ceased functioning in majority-Serb areas of Kosovo since 2012.

In a parallel move, Kosovo Police have begun issuing verbal warnings at border crossings, stating that Serbian-issued ID cards for Kosovo cities will soon be invalid.