NATO tightens grip on north Kosovo in police vacuum

By Matt Robinson and Branislav Krstic

MITROVICA, Kosovo (Reuters) - NATO troops in Kosovo patrolled the Serb stronghold of north Mitrovica alone on Tuesday after police withdrew following deadly Serb riots.

Kosovo Serb police followed U.N. officers in suspending normal duties in the Serb north of the flashpoint town, under orders from the NATO-led peacekeeping force and U.N. mission still in charge of the newly-independent state.

French, Belgian and Spanish troops in armoured personnel carriers secured the area, and 150 U.S. troops were deployed on the southern, Albanian side of Mitrovica.

The town was still tense having been rocked by the worst violence since Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority declared independence from Serbia on Feb 17 with Western backing.

Backed by Russia, Serbia has rejected the secession, and Western officials alleged Belgrade's involvement in the unrest in the Serb-dominated strip of north Kosovo.

A senior U.N. source said the mission was "keeping a close eye" on the growing influence of unofficial Serb security structures in north Mitrovica.

Serb riots involving automatic gunfire and hand grenades on Monday killed one Ukrainian police officer serving with the U.N. and left dozens of U.N. police and NATO soldiers injured. The Ukrainian officer died of shrapnel wounds.

The violence was sparked by a U.N. police operation to retake a U.N. court seized three days earlier by Serbs. U.N. officials said Serbian police personnel were involved.