Skopje:
Macedonian police arrested five people today in connection with clashes between security forces and an armed ethnic Albanian group in May that left 18 dead.
Eight police officers were among those killed in the shootout in the northern town of Kumanovo, over which 30 ethnic Albanians, including 18 from nearby Kosovo, were arrested at the time.
Macedonia labelled the gunmen as "terrorists" and claimed they were planning to attack state institutions.
The prosecutor for organised crime today announced the opening of an investigation against another seven suspects, including five arrested and another two still at large.
The new suspects, whose identity and nationality have not been revealed, were arrested in the villages of Brest, Malino and Otlja, which are near Kumanovo and mostly home to ethnic Albanians, a police source told AFP on condition of anonymity.
According to Macedonian media reports, those arrested today are suspected of having housed the armed group involved in the fighting.
The unrest in Kumanovo was the worst in Macedonia since a 2001 conflict between the government and rebels from the National Liberation Army who sought more rights for ethnic Albanians making up about one quarter of the country's 2.1 million people.
The shooting came amid a deep political crisis in Macedonia, with the opposition and government trading serious allegations including of spying and corruption and supporters of both sides taking to the streets in protest.
The European Union brokered negotiations over the summer to end the crisis which had for months paralysed the small Balkan country, which aspires to join the EU.
Eight police officers were among those killed in the shootout in the northern town of Kumanovo, over which 30 ethnic Albanians, including 18 from nearby Kosovo, were arrested at the time.
Macedonia labelled the gunmen as "terrorists" and claimed they were planning to attack state institutions.
The prosecutor for organised crime today announced the opening of an investigation against another seven suspects, including five arrested and another two still at large.
The new suspects, whose identity and nationality have not been revealed, were arrested in the villages of Brest, Malino and Otlja, which are near Kumanovo and mostly home to ethnic Albanians, a police source told AFP on condition of anonymity.
According to Macedonian media reports, those arrested today are suspected of having housed the armed group involved in the fighting.
The unrest in Kumanovo was the worst in Macedonia since a 2001 conflict between the government and rebels from the National Liberation Army who sought more rights for ethnic Albanians making up about one quarter of the country's 2.1 million people.
The shooting came amid a deep political crisis in Macedonia, with the opposition and government trading serious allegations including of spying and corruption and supporters of both sides taking to the streets in protest.
The European Union brokered negotiations over the summer to end the crisis which had for months paralysed the small Balkan country, which aspires to join the EU.
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