KFOR presence on the Ibër Bridge is decreasing, calls made for the return of vehicles

Ten days have passed since KFOR, NATO’s peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, announced the start of a “gradual transition of its permanent presence” on the main bridge over the Ibër River in Mitrovica.

The change comes after responsibility for the bridge’s security and administration was transferred to the Kosovo Police, while KFOR units are gradually reducing their permanent presence at the site.

Civil society representatives and city residents view the development as an opportunity to bring Mitrovica’s two sides closer together.

Betim Osmani of the Civic Initiative in North Mitrovica considers the transfer of responsibilities from KFOR to local institutions an important step toward greater unity between the north and the south.

Osmani says the decision should have been made earlier, while noting that the north needs investment after going without it for 27 years. According to him, measures are needed to bring citizens back, particularly members of the Albanian community, as well as to rebuild and integrate education and healthcare—quality services that, he says, residents of the north have lacked for 27 years.

For Osmani, KFOR’s gradual withdrawal is a sign that responsibility for security on the bridge is increasingly being transferred to Kosovo’s institutions.

He believes the process could lead to the return of vehicle traffic by the end of the year. According to him, this is a gradual move, and the removal of the tent previously used by the Carabinieri shows that the situation is changing. Osmani adds that, after the summer season ends, vehicles could begin crossing the bridge by the end of the year.

He stresses that there have been no significant tensions in the area in recent years. For this reason, he says, the constant presence of forces on the bridge is not necessary, while increasing the number of police officers or patrols in the north, alongside KFOR’s presence, would be sufficient.

Osmani recalls that four other bridges linking the north and south are also located near the Ibër River, and says there have been no problems using them.

Unlike before, Skender Sadiku, also from the Civic Initiative in North Mitrovica, hopes the process will not be halted by political pressure or interests.

According to Sadiku, freedom of movement is a fundamental right and institutions must guarantee it for all citizens. He says bridges are built to connect people and cultures, so all circumstances should lead to their opening.

Sadiku emphasizes that North Mitrovica faces more urgent problems than the bridge issue, particularly in healthcare services and infrastructure.

Meanwhile, citizens who use the bridge have noticed changes in security and in the way traffic has been managed in recent months.

Sadri Imeri describes the bridge as the main connection between the two parts of the city and hopes vehicle traffic will soon be allowed as well. He says crossing has become easier and freer, but stresses that the other bridges do not serve the same function as the bridge in the city center.

Imeri recalls that crossing this area used to be very difficult because of Serbian gangs, obstacles and a lack of security. According to him, the situation has now been normalized, and he expects traffic to be freed up within two or three weeks.

Sylejman Curri attributes the change in the situation to the presence and control of the Kosovo Police. He says this has allowed citizens to move much more freely and without fear, describing the easing of traffic restrictions as 100 percent.

Curri says that in the past, armed individuals would appear in the area around the bakery and police station, while residents did not dare cross to that side. Today, he says, such a situation cannot occur because that area is controlled by the Kosovo Police.

On August 20, one day before the report, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić asked NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte not to continue the gradual reduction of KFOR’s presence on the main bridge over the Ibër River.

Vučić said that KFOR’s withdrawal at this time could create, as he put it, “conditions for a final confrontation with the Serbian population” in northern Kosovo.

NATO has said that any decision on the possible opening of the bridge to vehicle traffic must take into account the needs of all local communities.

A NATO official told Radio Free Europe that KFOR would continue to provide the necessary security support so that the European Union’s diplomatic efforts could move forward.

Currently, the main bridge over the Ibër River is used only by pedestrians. Kosovo’s government had announced in July 2024 that the bridge would also be opened to vehicles, but the initiative triggered tensions and reactions from the international community.