Kosovo MP Kurti Sent to High-Security Jail

A Pristina court on Sunday ordered Kurti to be held for 30 days in a high-security prison after riot police detained him when they stormed the Vetevendosje party's headquarters the previous day, clashing with its supporters.

The raid followed an opposition rally on Saturday against the Kosovo government's recent EU-brokered agreements with Serbia and Montenegro.

Kurti, a founder of Vetevendosje, attended the rally and addressed protesters from the stage despite being the subject of an arrest warrant.

Around 100 opposition supporters, some of whom who tried to prevent Kurti's arrest, were also detained, although many have already been released, police said.

In a joint statement on Sunday, the US, French, British and Italian embassies in Pristina said that politicians did not have the right to break the law.

"We believe that no-one is above the law. We expect and request all procedures to be followed correctly in the spirit of transparency, especially in politically sensitive cases, and will continue to observe closely cases involving members of the Assembly [Kosovo parliament]," the statement said.

Kurti has been prominent in opposition protests against the agreements with Serbia and Montenegro, which have seen opposition MPs paralysing the work of parliament and setting off tear gas in the legislature.

They claim that the agreement with Serbia will give too many powers to Kosovo's Serb minority, and the one with Montenegro will cede some of Kosovo's territory.

Another opposition MP, Donika Kadaj-Bujpi of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, was also arrested on November 18 on similar charges to Kurti, and remains in police custody.

Kosovo police have said they are also looking for two other Vetevendosje MPs,...