Serbia's primary border crossing with Kosovo is closed due to protests

Pristina As tensions with its neighbor in the Balkans rise, the Merdare border crossing on Kosovo's eastern border has been closed.
As a show of solidarity for their ethnic relatives in Kosovo who refuse to recognize the country's independence, demonstrators on the Serbian side of the border blocked Kosovo's busiest border crossing, forcing it to close.
Due to similar protests on both sides of the Kosovar border since December 10, just three entrance points between the two nations are still available as of Wednesday.
Following weeks of growing tensions between Belgrade and Pristina, Serbia announced it had placed its army on the highest level of alert just hours prior to the latest protest.
According to Belgrade-based media, Serbs in Serbia on Tuesday constructed the most recent roadblock close to the Merdare crossing on the country's eastern border with Kosovo using a truck and tractors.
Thousands of Kosovars who work in other parts of Europe are unable to travel back for the holidays because to the blockade.
About 50,000 Serbs who reside in the ethnically divided northern part of Kosovo refuse to acknowledge either the Pristina government or Kosovo's existence as a sovereign nation distinct from Serbia. Many Serbs in Serbia support them, as does the government there.
