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Protest inside Macedonian parliament injures 10

by IBNS 28 Apr 2017, 09:39 am

Skopje, Apr 28 (IBNS): At least 10 people were injured following a protest inside the Macedonian parliament, reports said.

The protest started after an ethnic Albanian, Taalat Xhaferi, was elected as the speaker, a BBC report read.

As protesters, who are supporters of ex-Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski's VMRO party, took matters into their own hand, Social Democrat leader Zoran Zaev was left bleeding.

As violence rose, police fired stun grenades to break the mob.

The protests were condemned by the US embassy in Macedonia.

A statement from the embassy published on Twitter read, "We condemn the violence in the strongest possible terms. It is not consistent with democracy and is not an acceptable way to resolve differences. It is critical all parties respect democratic processes and the law, and refrain from violent actions which exacerbate the situation."

NATO general secretary Jens Stoltenberg tweeted, "Shocked by attacks in #Skopje Parliament. All parties should respect democratic process and engage in dialogue, not violence."