Kosovo's parliament was suspended on Saturday after an opposition lawmaker threw eggs at caretaker Prime Minister Albin Kurti, bringing a tense political standoff to an extraordinary halt and raising fresh questions over the country's next government.

The disruption came as Kosovo remains locked in a political deadlock over the election of a new president. Kurti has been negotiating with opposition parties for days, but no agreement has been reached on a candidate.

The confrontation erupted when Kurti attempted to delay a key vote in parliament. Opposition MP Time Kadrijaj then approached and threw eggs at the prime minister, shouting, "Shame on you!"

The chairperson ordered the live broadcast of the session to be cut as security personnel moved in to protect Kurti.

Kurti appeared unfazed by the incident. He said that if having eggs thrown at him was the price of continuing dialogue, he was "happy to pay this price."

Another crisis after repeated political deadlocks

The dramatic scene is the latest episode in a prolonged period of political instability in Kosovo, Europe's youngest democracy.

The country has held three elections in less than two years, with successive parliaments struggling to function amid deep political divisions.

Kurti's Vetevendosje (VV) party emerged as the winner of the most recent election in June and secured enough seats to govern. However, the party still needs a two-thirds majority in parliament to elect a new president, forcing Kurti to seek support from opposition parties.

Those negotiations have so far failed to produce an agreement.

The political uncertainty intensified after a constitutional deadline to elect parliament's speaker expired on Friday. Kurti has asked for more time to negotiate, but rival lawmakers have threatened legal action over the request.

It remains unclear whether the request to delay the speaker's election will be allowed to proceed.

Parliament suspended after egg-throwing incident

Saturday's confrontation interrupted the parliamentary session before a ruling could be made on the issue. The sitting was suspended, and no new date for another session has yet been announced.

The disruption is not entirely unusual for Kurti, whose political career has included highly contentious parliamentary confrontations. Members of his own party previously used tear gas inside the chamber when Vetevendosje was in opposition, protesting parliamentary votes.

With AFP inputs