Kosovon Serb whose arrest sparked crisis is released from jail

Kosovo police officers stand at the closed Merdare border crossing between Kosovo and Serbia on December 28, 2022 (Visar Kryeziu/AP/PA)

A former Kosovo Serb policeman whose detention triggered a major crisis between Serbia and Kosovo has been ordered to be released from prison and placed under house arrest, according to his lawyer.

The December 10 arrest of Dejan Pantic led to protests by Kosovo Serbs who erected multiple roadblocks in the north of the country. Pantic was detained for “terrorism” after allegedly assaulting a Kosovo police officer during an earlier protest.