In the village of Miletino, near Tetovo, the argument over who owns the road didn't end at a lawyer's office or at the land registry. It ended in the Emergency Centre in Tetovo.

According to the Interior Ministry, on October 2 at around 10:30 the Zherovjane police unit received a report that near the village centre, over unresolved property relations concerning a road, 75-year-old M.K. had injured 66-year-old T.K., also from Miletino, with a sharp object. The injured man was taken to Tetovo by ambulance. There is no official information yet on the severity of his injuries.

Police carried out an on-site investigation and secured the traces of blood and the sharp object, and M.K. was detained and held at the police station. Once the case is documented, appropriate proceedings will follow.

Property disputes in villages are as old as the villages themselves, and boundaries and roads can stay "unresolved" on paper for decades. But the decision to reach for a sharp object wasn't made by the land registry or the court - it was made by a man. How many more disputes like this are smouldering until someone decides to "resolve" them himself?