A standoff between Kosovo police and some 30 gunmen who ambushed an officer at a village monastery on Sunday has ended with the death of three ambushers and arrest of five other suspects.

Xhelal Svecla, Kosovo's minister of internal affairs, said police engaged the gunmen in a firefight near the village of Banjska where an officer on patrol was shot dead and his companion was wounded early Sunday.

One of the gunmen holed up inside a monastery and four civilian suspects found carrying radio equipment and weapons outside the complex were arrested after the firefight lasting for hours.

Svecla said police had made several arrests during the clearance operation and seized a lot of weapons and equipment. However, it remained unclear if all the gunmen had been apprehended during the sweep.

The Serbian Orthodox Church also confirmed that gunmen had stormed the monastery in Banjska, where pilgrims from the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad were staying.

Pictures released by Kosovo authorities showed several heavily armed gunmen wearing uniforms, barricading themselves in at the monastery.

"We can see armed people in uniforms… they are firing on us and we are firing back," Kosovo police official Veton Elshani told Agence France-Presse by phone from Banjska.

The ambush and ensuing firefight marks one of the gravest escalations in Kosovo for years, following months of mounting tensions and stalling talks between the government in Pristina and Serbia.

Kosovo police closed the Jarinje and Brnjak border crossings between Serbia and Kosovo following the incident.

Act of terrorism

Kosovo's Prime Minister Albin Kurti called the ambush an act of terrorism and pinned the blame on the Serbian government.

"Organized crime with political, financial and logistical support from officials in Belgrade is attacking our country," Kurti wrote on social media.

WITH AFP