And so it begins, again....

NATO Troops Close Kosovo Roads, Cutting Off Route To Serbia

KOSOVSKA MITROVICA, Kosovo (AP)--North Atlantic Treaty Organization troops have closed the roads leading to border checkpoints Tuesday, cutting off the only link between northern Kosovo and Serbia, U.N. spokesman Besim Hoti said.

Earlier, smoke billowed from two posts separating Kosovo from Serbia and flames engulfed several U.N. vehicles set ablaze in protest against Kosovo's weekend proclamation of independence and anger over international recognition of the new nation.

The attacks on U.N. border crossings showed the protesters' willingness to use violence to hold onto Kosovo - and could clear the way for Serbian militants to return to fight in Kosovo, a land Serb nationalists consider the cradle of their state and religion.

Kosovo has not been under Belgrade's control since 1999, when NATO launched airstrikes to halt a Serbian crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists. A U.N. mission since has governed Kosovo, with more than 16,000 NATO troops and a multiethnic police force policing the province.

  (END) Dow Jones Newswires
 02-19-081312ET
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