Skopje, 1 January 2026 (MIA) - New Year's Eve was mainly calm, except for two serious incidents - a murder of a Turkish national in the Old Skopje Bazaar and a two-year-old child severely injured from a firearm - said Minister of Interior Panche Toshkovski on Thursday.

"The circumstances around the child's injury are still unknown. We will inform the public as soon as they are determined," Minister Toshkovski told reporters.

On the murder of the Turkish national, he said another person was severely injured in the incident that involved the use of knives.

"We have identified a suspect who is still on the run. A group of people took part in the incident and according to the information I have at this time, they were all foreign nationals," said Toshkovski.

He said 31 crimes and 23 traffic accidents were recorded on New Year's Eve, with 49 individuals detained on various grounds, primarily related to unlawful drug trafficking and public order violations.

"The state of nationwide security was stable, with the vast majority of citizens behaving responsibly, thus contributing to personal and common security", noted Toshkovski.

Photo: MIA