Bosnian prosecutors have ordered the detention of three top Bosnian Serb officials over a series of separatist actions in recent weeks that have heightened tensions in the Balkan country.

Bosnian state prosecutors on Wednesday ordered the arrest of Serb separatist leader Milorad Dodik and his aides for ignoring a court summons, a move which Dodik pledged to resist with help from Russia in a widening standoff over the fragile country.

Bosnian state prosecutors have issued an arrest order for Milorad Dodik, a Russian-backed Bosnian Serb leader, exacerbating tensions in Bosnia's intricate political landscape. Dodik's recent conviction and response reflect deep-rooted ethnic divisions stemming from the 1990s war when the region was divided by the Dayton peace accords.

Sucic SARAJEVO (Reuters) -Bosnian state prosecutors on Wednesday ordered the arrest of Russian-backed Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik and his aides for ignoring a court summons, raising the stakes in a standoff that threatens the Balkan country's stability.

Bosnian officials are challenging a set of laws barring the state judiciary and police from operating in the part of the country controlled by the Bosnian Serbs, legislation that has fueled tensions in the ethnically-divided Balkan country.

Bosnia's prosecutors said on Thursday that Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik was being investigated for attacking the country's constitutional order, the day after he signed laws banning the state judiciary and police from its autonomous Serb region.