Kumanovo is an important city in the northern part of Macedonia. The town's metal-processing, tobacco, agriculture, footwear and textile industries have made it an economic, trading and cultural center of approximately 135,529 people. The Church of St. George at the Monastery of Staro Nagoricane is the best known cultural and historical monument in Kumanovo. It was built in the 11th century and was reconstructed in the l4th. During its reconstruction, the fresco-painters Mihailo and Evtihij painted its walls with frescoes of exceptional skill. Together with Prilep, it was in Kumanovo that on October 11, 1941, the anti-fascist insurrection of the Macedonian people and its struggle for national and social liberation began.

Violence

At 4:45 PM, on December 27, 2002, a bomb went off in front of Kumanovo's Goce Delcev High School while classes were still in session, killing one and injuring five bystanders. Goce Delcev is Kumanovo's biggest high school, and is located near the central square. Shrapnel was found as far as 100 meters away from a trash can in front of the school where the bomb had been concealed. Shortly after the detonation, police arrived on the scene and blocked off adjacent streets. Although authorities have yet to discern who is responsible for the attack it is not believed that al Qaeda or any other foreign terrorist group was involved in the bombing.

Narcotics

Illegal drugs are notably high spread in Kumanovo particularly becauseof its location which is close to three border crossings. Dragi Karadzinski, doctor and specialist in neuro-psychiatry at the Hospital Centre in Kumanovo, believes that the two most common narcotics among Kumanovo's youth are marijuana and hashish. The drug trade in Kumanovo has lead to a criminal underworld directly tried to Albanian mob factions.

External Links

• [1] Narcotics in Kumanovo
• [2] Terrorism in Kumanovo
• [3] Macedonia FAQ