The Kosovo Liberation Army was an ethnic Albanian separatist militia that sought the separation of Kosovo, the vast majority of which is inhabited by Albanians, from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) and Serbia during the 1990s. Albanian nationalism was a central tenet of the KLA and many in its ranks supported the creation of a Greater Albania, which would encompass all Albanians in the Balkans, stressing Albanian culture, ethnicity and nation.
The Kosovo Force (KFOR) is a NATO-led international peacekeeping force in Kosovo. Its operations are gradually reducing until Kosovo's Security Force, established in 2009, becomes self-sufficient.
Viti or Vitina is a town and municipality located in the District of Gjilan in Kosovo. According to the 2011 census, the town of Viti has 4,924 inhabitants, while the municipality has 46,987 inhabitants.
The Visoki Dečani Monastery is a medieval Serbian Orthodox Christian monastery located near Deçan, Kosovo. It was founded in the first half of the 14th century by Stefan Dečanski, King of Serbia. Dečani is often considered to be one of the most endangered European cultural heritage sites. It is by far the largest medieval church in the Balkans.
Camp Bondsteel is the operation headquarters of the Kosovo Force (KFOR) in Kosovo. It is located near Ferizaj in southeastern Kosovo. It is the Regional Command-East headed by the United States Army and it is supported by troops from Greece, Italy, Finland, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia, Switzerland and Turkey. The base is named after U.S. Army Staff Sergeant James L. Bondsteel, who is a Medal of Honor recipient.
Ärna or Uppsala Air Base is an air base located northwest of Uppsala, Sweden. It is a base of the Swedish Air Force. In 2009, it was announced that the Armed Forces had the intention to phase out its airport unit on 1 July 2010 and hand over the operation of the aerodrome to a private operator. However, on 19 December 2009, it was announced by the Supreme Commander that the Armed Forces will continue military air operations. This is because the alternative proposals to locate the flight operations were not feasible. Since 14 October 2021, Uppland Wing is based at Ärna Air Base.
On 17–18 March 2004, violence erupted in the partitioned town of Mitrovica, Kosovo, leaving hundreds wounded and at least 14 people dead. The unrest was precipitated by reports in the Kosovo Albanian media which reported that three Kosovo Albanian boys had drowned after being chased into the Ibar River by a group of Kosovo Serbs. UN peacekeepers and NATO troops scrambled to contain a gun battle between Serbs and Albanians. Serbs call the event the March Pogrom, while the Albanians call it the March Unrest.
Camp Monteith is a Kosovo Security Force base in Gjilan, Kosovo, about 20 miles (32 km) east of Camp Bondsteel. A former Yugoslav artillery outpost and 79 parcels of private land, the area was taken over by U.S. Marines and used as a base of operation during the Kosovo War of 1999. The camp was named after Jimmie W. Monteith, who received the Medal of Honor for heroism in France during World War II. At its peak, the camp housed 2000 soldiers and civilian contractors. Established in June 1999 to be used as a staging point for the bulk of U.S. forces stationed in the Multi National Brigade-East. Initially occupied by U.S. Marines, over the past seven years successive rotations of U.S. Army soldiers have used the camp as part of NATO’s KFOR.
The 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is a modular infantry brigade of the United States Army National Guard of Indiana. It is headquartered in Lawrence Readiness Training Center, on the grounds of Fort Benjamin Harrison.
Klokot or Kllokot is a town and municipality in the District of Gjilan in southeastern Kosovo. The municipality was established on 8 January 2010, the settlements having been part of the municipality of Viti. The seat of the municipality is in the town of Klokot.
The 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 11th Airborne Division is an airborne infantry brigade combat team (BCT) of the United States Army. The unit is stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska and is the only airborne brigade combat team in the Pacific Theater. It is also the newest airborne Infantry BCT and one of only five in the United States Army; the others are the three Infantry BCTs of the 82nd Airborne Division and the 173rd Airborne Brigade.
The Church of Saint Elijah, also known as Saint Andrew's Church, is а Serbian Orthodox church located on a small hill near the city of Podujevo, in Kosovo. The complex includes an Orthodox cemetery. It was built in 1929, and has been demolished several times, as of 2010, the church has been rebuilt and renovated five times.
Čaglavica is a village near Pristina, Kosovo.
Hajvalia is a village or suburb southeast of Pristina, located 635 meters above sea level. It lies in the municipality of Prishtina. It has approximately 2,300 homes and 7 391 (2011) inhabitants. A small creek begins in the town, while another begins north-east of the town and runs through it. After 1970, right up until now, there has been an increase in population, mainly from newcomers.
Clashes between the Republic of Kosovo and ethnic Serbs in northern Kosovo began on 25 July 2011 when the Kosovo Police crossed into the Serb-controlled municipalities of North Kosovo, to control several administrative border crossings. This was done without the Kosovo Police consulting either Serbia or Kosovo Force (KFOR)/EULEX. Though tensions between the two sides eased somewhat after the intervention of NATO's KFOR forces, they remained high amid concern from the European Union, which also blamed Kosovo for the unilateral provocation. On 19 April 2013, an agreement was signed in Brussels between representatives of Kosovo and Serbia. The 15-point document granted devolved powers to North Kosovo regarding economic development, education, healthcare and urban planning, and several mechanisms that allowed a certain autonomy in justice, policing and electoral matters.
Swisscoy is a unit of the Swiss Armed Forces. Consisting of a contingent of 195 troops at most, the unit is deployed in Kosovo as part of the NATO-led KFOR international peacekeeping force. Swisscoy moved into Kosovo in October 1999 and will remain there until at least the end of 2023.
Serbian cultural and religious sites in Kosovo were systematically vandalized and destroyed over several historical periods, during the Ottoman rule, World War I, World War II, Yugoslav communist rule, Kosovo War and 2004 unrest.
The 2000 unrest in Kosovo was the result of the United Nations Interim Administration adopting Resolution 1244 on 10 June 1999. The unrest was fought between the Kosovo Force (KFOR), Kosovar Albanians, and Kosovar Serbs. It lasted somewhere from February 16, 2000 – June 6, 2000. An unknown number of Kosovar Albanians and Kosovar Serbs died along with an unknown number injured, while 1 Russian KFOR soldier died from shot wounds and UNMIK vehicles were burned during the unrest.
This article includes information on actions described as terrorist acts in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Serbia and Montenegro (2003–2006) and Serbia.
The 1st Marine Regiment is an amphibian regiment of the Swedish Amphibious Corps based at the Berga Naval Base in Berga, Haninge Municipality. Raised from the Vaxholm Coastal Artillery Regiment in 2000 when the Swedish Amphibious Corps was formed, the 1st Marine Regiment has a large geographical spread where units are trained and grouped at Berga, south of Stockholm, in Gothenburg and in Gotland. Although the unit's natural combat environment is coastal zones, river deltas and other amphibious areas, the unit has the ability to operate in all types of terrain, such as desert. The 1st Marine Regiment has participated in operations in, for example, Kosovo, Gulf of Aden, Chad and Afghanistan.
