Skopje, 11 July 2025 (MIA) - Minister of Interior Panche Toshkovski in an interview with Sitel TV on Friday expressed regret and condemnation for the incident involving Skopje Mayor Danela Arsovska, clarifying what actions the Ministry had taken and calling on Arsovska not to run away from the Ministry of Interior (MoI) and the institutions.

He denied that the Ministry of Interior did not act after Friday's incident.

"It is not true that the Ministry of Interior is not taking action and does not act. For today's incident, fact number one - the police arrived when they were called to the scene. Fact number two - Arsovska was called to the police station after the incident, but she did not show up. In the hospital, a specialist found physical injuries, redness on her left lower leg. After the examination in the hospital was completed, she went back to the police station, after which police officers began police actions, and in the meantime they contacted a public prosecutor. The person she stated as such has been detained, is in the police station, along with two other people who verbally threatened her," said Toshkovski. 

He added that when the police were compiling the report from Arsovska, she had left without signing the report. 

"Again, there's only parading on Facebook, on social networks, while she did not sign the report. And now the question arises, could it be that the victim in this case, the person presented as victim in the public, is precisely the one who had caused the physical attack. I would ask her not to run away from the Ministry of Interior, from the institutions. I express deep regret and condemn any attack, regardless of who is attacked in this situation. I especially condemn an ​​attack on a woman, especially if that woman was elected in elections and represents a mayor. But could it turn out in the end that all of this is a well-thought-out scenario for a political circus, where the victim will be precisely the one who committed the physical attack, because I am receiving certain such information, I don't know, I assume," Toshkovski said.

Asked about Arsovska's claim that police officers were at the scene of the incident and witnessed the attack, and whether the Ministry of Interior will determine what actions have been taken, Toshkovski said the factual situation will be fully determined.

"We must not allow anyone to feel unsafe in Macedonia, but we must neither allow anyone to grossly manipulate the Macedonian public. I condemn what happened today in terms of physical violence, regardless of who did it, and all actions will be taken to shed light on it. I have not seen anything yet, but I am being told that the actual situation was very different from what has been presented to the public so far. A public prosecutor has also been notified, and those who the mayor claims attacked her are currently at the police station and are being processed by order of a public prosecutor," Toshkovski pointed out. 

He also mentioned two previous cases in which the Ministry of Interior had acted upon threats against Arsovska.

"Arsovska has so far, within the competence of the Ministry of Interior, reported a threat from a police officer who threatened her on her Facebook page. After such a threat, the Department for Internal Control, upon receiving information, calls the Mayor by phone and invites her to come to the Ministry of Interior. She refuses to do so, after which police officers go to the City of Skopje on July 2, 2025. The Mayor signs a report where she verbally states that she felt threatened by a police officer. On July 3, the Department for Internal Control submits a request to the Department for Computer Crime, and on the same day, the Department for Computer Crime submits a response to Internal Control stating that such an event has occurred, that they have established such a factual situation. On July 7, the Department for Internal Control initiates disciplinary proceedings against a police officer and informs Arsovska that such a procedure has been initiated," Toshkovski noted. 

He asked why the Mayor did not make this known to the public and did not say that the Ministry of Interior had fully acted, mentioning another case following a report from Arsovska on June 1, 2025.  

"On June 1, the first report for threatened safety was made by Danela Arsovska, where evidence was provided, and criminal charges were filed under Article 144 of the Criminal Code, so the Ministry of Interior acted in this case as well," said Toshkovski.

Photo: print screen