KOSOVSKA MITROVICA, Kosovo-Hundreds of angry Serbs have burst into a U.N. court in northern Kosovo.

The Serbs have held daily protests in front of the court since Kosovo declared independence from Serbia last month.

The protesters have been seeking to take control of local institutions that have been run by the U.N. since the end of the war in Kosovo in 1999. The crowds have prevented ethnic Albanian judges from returning to work at the court in the Serb-dominated city of Kosovska Mitrovica.

Dozens of U.N. and Kosovo riot police deployed in front of the courthouse did not intervene as the Serbs forced their way in Friday.

A Serb flag has been raised over the building.