US Warns Citizens To Avoid Anti-NATO Protests Set To Take Place Across Europe - State Dept

US citizens should avoid areas where demonstrations are expected to take place across Europe and North America on Sunday protesting the 1999 NATO bombing campaign against former Yugoslavia, the State Department said in a travel alert

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th July, 2019) US citizens should avoid areas where demonstrations are expected to take place across Europe and North America on Sunday protesting the 1999 NATO bombing campaign against former Yugoslavia, the State Department said in a travel alert.

"Police report a demonstration protesting the 1999 NATO campaign in Serbia is expected to take place Sunday, July 14 beginning at 8:00PM in front of the US Embassy and the following NATO Allies' Embassies: United Kingdom, Portugal, Luxemburg, Poland, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, Iceland, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Spain, Greece, Turkey, and Canada," the alert said on Friday.

The demonstration is organized by "Gerila" and the duration is unknown, the alert said. US citizens should avoid the area and keep a low profile, according to the warning.

In 1999, the armed confrontation between the Kosovo Liberation Army, an ethnic-Albanian militia, which had supported Kosovo's independence since the 1990s, and the Serbian army and police led to NATO airstrikes against former Yugoslavia. NATO's operations ran from March 24 to June 10, 1999. The Serbian government estimates that about 2,500 people, including 89 children, were killed during the US-led bombing campaign.

The military operation was conducted without the approval of the UN Security Council and on the basis of the West's allegations that the Yugoslavian government had carried out ethnic cleansing against Albanians. It remains a controversial subject between Albanians, who see NATO's interference as a protective measure, and Serbs, who condemn the operation for killing civilians.