Serbian party in Kosovo

As talks in Kosovo drag on between Albin Kurti's Vetevendosje movement and Isa Mustafa's Democratic League of Kosovo, LDK, on forming a new coalition government, officials from Belgrade-backed Srpska Lista, the main Serbian party in Kosovo, have already taken up their new posts in Serb-dominated northern Kosovo.

The Belgrade-backed Serbian party in Kosovo has condemned the leader of the Vetevendosje Movement and likely new Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, for saying that while Srpska Lista will not be part of his new coalition government, his cabinet will still contain a minister from the party.

Kosovo authorities on Wednesday banned a football match from taking place in the disputed Serb-dominated north of the country between Serbian club Red Star and a local team, Trepca, which it does not recognise, after calling it a "serious provocation".

Scheduled local elections in four northern mainly Serbian districts of Kosovo were thrown into crisis on Wednesday when the Central Election Commission, CEC, failed to certify candidates from the main Serbian party in Kosovo, Srpska Lista.

The candidates did not receive the necessary support from the CEC, meaning their candidacies have been rejected.

Ex-guerilla commander Ramush Haradinaj's cabinet was approved on Saturday ending a political deadlock that has persisted since elections on June 11.

Haradinaj, the candidate of the PAN coalition, won a tight majority - with 61 votes in favour in the 120-seat parliament.

"There is no alternative to dialogue with Serbia," said Haradinaj, addressing parliament on Saturday.

Kosovo's parliament will assemble on Saturday in Pristina to vote on Ramush Haradinaj's new government amid complaints about the number of planned ministerial posts.

Haradinaj told the media on Friday that he was not yet in possession of full list of the names of the new cabinet.

Slavko Simic, the head of Lista Srpska, the ethnic Serbian party in Kosovo's coalition government, told Kosovo's public broadcaster late on Thursday that Jevtic had filed her resignation from the position of local government minister.

The ethnic Serbian party in Kosovo's coalition government, Srpska Lista, on Wednesday stated that following a request from Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, it would again freeze its participation in Kosovo institutions.

The party also said that Mirjana Jevtic, who last week replaced Ljubomir Maric as Minister for Local Government, will resign from her post.