December 14, 1998, Albanian–Yugoslav border ambush

Last updated

December 14, 1998, Albanian–Yugoslav border ambush
Part of the Kosovo War
DateDecember 14, 1998
Location
Albanian–Yugoslav border
42°16′32″N20°32′15″E / 42.2756°N 20.5375°E / 42.2756; 20.5375
Result Yugoslav victory
Belligerents
Flag of Serbia and Montenegro (1992-2006).svg Yugoslav Army Emblema e UCK-se.svg Kosovo Liberation Army
Commanders and leaders
Unknown Mujë Krasniqi   †
Strength
Unknown 140 militants
Casualties and losses
None 36 killed
12 wounded
9 captured
Kosovo adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Site of the ambush
class=notpageimage|
Location within Kosovo
Serbia and Montenegro (2003-2006) location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Site of the ambush
Site of the ambush (Serbia and Montenegro)

On December 14, 1998, the Yugoslav Army (VJ) ambushed a group of 140 Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) militants attempting to smuggle weapons and supplies from their base in Albania into the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. A five-hour battle ensued, ending with the deaths of 36 militants and the capture of a further nine. Dozens more fled back to Albania, abandoning large quantities of weapons and supplies, which the Yugoslav authorities subsequently seized. The ambush was the most serious war-related incident in Kosovo since a U.S.-negotiated truce took effect two months before. It came on the heels of increasing tensions in the province, where inter-ethnic violence had been escalating steadily since early 1995.

Contents

Within hours, a group of primarily unknown, but suspected KLA gunmen attacked a Serb-owned café in Peja, killing six unarmed Serb youths. Western diplomats suspected the attack was carried out in retaliation for the ambush, though the KLA denied any responsibility. Many years later, the Serbian government would admit that the massacre was a black operation done by the Serbian secret service. [1]

Several days later after the ambush, Yugoslav authorities returned the bodies of all but three of the fallen militants following mediation by the International Committee of the Red Cross. The militants were given heroes' funerals in a rebel-held area, in a ceremony attended by thousands of ethnic Albanians, including other KLA fighters. In January 1999, the KLA abducted eight VJ personnel, who were later exchanged for the nine militants captured in the ambush.

Background

In 1989, Belgrade abolished self-rule in Serbia's two autonomous provinces, Vojvodina and Kosovo. [2] Kosovo, a province inhabited predominantly by ethnic Albanians, was of great historical and cultural significance to Serbs. [3] Prior to the mid-19th century they had formed a majority in the province, but by 1990 represented only about 10 percent of the population. [4] Alarmed by their dwindling numbers, the province's Serbs began to fear they were being "squeezed out" by the Albanians, with whom ethnic tensions had been brewing since the early 1980s. [5] As soon as Kosovo's autonomy was abolished, a minority government run by Serbs and Montenegrins was appointed by Serbian President Slobodan Milošević to oversee the province, enforced by thousands of heavily armed paramilitaries from Serbia-proper. Albanian culture was systematically repressed and hundreds of thousands of Albanians working in state-owned companies lost their jobs. [2]

In 1996, a group of Albanian nationalists calling themselves the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) began attacking the Yugoslav Army (Serbo-Croatian : Vojska Jugoslavije; VJ) and the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs (Serbo-Croatian: Ministarstvo unutrašnjih poslova; MUP) in Kosovo. Their goal was to separate the province from the rest of Yugoslavia, which following the separation of Slovenia, Croatia, Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1991 and 1992, became a rump federation made up of Serbia and Montenegro. At first, the KLA carried out hit-and-run attacks: 31 in 1996, 55 in 1997, and 66 in January and February 1998 alone. [6] The group quickly gained popularity among young Kosovo Albanians, many of whom favoured a more aggressive approach and rejected the non-violent resistance of politician Ibrahim Rugova. [7] It received a significant boost in 1997 when civil unrest in neighbouring Albania led to thousands of weapons from the Albanian Army's depots being looted. Many of these weapons ended up in the hands of the KLA, which already had substantial resources due to its involvement in the trafficking of drugs, weapons, and people, as well as through donations from the Albanian diaspora. [8] The group's popularity skyrocketed after the VJ and MUP attacked the compound of KLA leader Adem Jashari in March 1998, killing him, his closest associates, and most of his extended family. The attack motivated thousands of young Kosovo Albanians to join the KLA, fueling the Kosovar uprising that eventually erupted in the spring of 1998. [9]

Timeline

Prelude

The Kosovar conflict escalated over the summer of 1998. The KLA increasingly took to smuggling weapons and supplies from Albania across the border into Kosovo. In September, Yugoslav officials stated that 90 militants had been killed while attempting to illegally cross the border since January of that year. The Yugoslav Defense Ministry reported that 947 rifles, 161 light machine guns, 33 mortars, 55 mines, 3,295 hand grenades, and almost 350,000 rounds of ammunition had been confiscated over the same period. [10]

In October 1998, Milošević and U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke reached an agreement to temporarily end the fighting, whereby Yugoslavia would halve the number of troops and police personnel stationed in Kosovo. The agreement came after Holbrooke convinced the KLA to consider negotiations with Belgrade while making it clear to Milošević that failing to find a peaceful solution to the conflict would lead to a NATO bombing campaign against Serbia. [11] The agreement required Yugoslavia to let Kosovo Verification Mission (KVM) observers enter Kosovo to ensure that the Yugoslavs were abiding by their commitment to withdraw thousands of soldier and police officers from the province. [12] Small-scale clashes continued, and by December, over 1,000 people had been killed and more than 300,000 displaced in the fighting. [13]

Clashes

At around 02:00 on the morning of Monday, December 14, 1998, 140 KLA militants [14] [15] tried to illegally cross the Albanian–Yugoslav border [16] between the outposts of Gorozhup and Liken, about 70 kilometres (43 mi) west of Pristina. [17] They were coming from a base inside Albania, where they had been training. [18] [19] The subsequent ambush occurred near the village of Kušnin, just west of Prizren. [20] The militants had been trying to illegally smuggle weapons, ammunition and supplies to be used by KLA fighters in Kosovo. A member of the KVM told reporters that the militants encountered a Yugoslav sentry post and were attacked by the guards. One of the militants was killed instantly and the column started retreating. As the militants turned back they were ambushed and another 25 were killed. The bodies of five other militants were soon discovered not far from the site of the ambush, raising the number of KLA fatalities to 31. [21] Fighting between the militants and the border guards continued for about five hours. [16] [17] Gunfire and explosions could reportedly be heard in three nearby villages. [17] By 07:00, a total of 36 militants had been killed, [14] [15] [22] twelve were wounded [17] and a further nine were captured. [23] The militants who were not killed or captured either managed to flee back to Albania or went into hiding along the border, according to a KVM monitor. [21] The Yugoslavs reported they had suffered no casualties, [16] and stated that large quantities of "modern weapons", [23] ammunition and supplies had been seized. [17]

The VJ allowed a team of KVM observers to view the bodies, and photograph and record the names of the prisoners. [21] Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) observers were also escorted to the site, and reported seeing 31 bodies in camouflage uniforms with KLA insignia. [24] They identified one woman among the dead. [23] The KVM reported that another woman had been taken prisoner. [21] A KVM monitor told reporters: "Our initial feelings are that this was a normal military operation ... not a set-up." [21] The reported figure of 36 dead made the ambush the single deadliest war-related incident in Kosovo since the truce took effect two months before. [16] [17] [23] Eight KLA fighters had been killed near the site of the ambush just eleven days prior. [24]

Aftermath

According to Albanian journalists, villages near the ambush site remained sealed off by Yugoslav forces for the remainder of the day. [23] Within hours of the ambush, the KLA vowed revenge. [25] That evening, suspected KLA gunmen entered a Serb-owned café in Peja and opened fire on the patrons, killing six Serb youths. [14] Western diplomats suspected that the attack was carried out by the KLA in retribution for the ambush. [23] The KLA denied responsibility; the journalist Tim Judah suggests that the attack may have been carried out by a rogue unit. [26] The shooting appalled foreign emissaries, and at a meeting with Milošević the following day, Holbrooke condemned it as an act of terrorism and described the situation in Kosovo as "very grave". Milošević issued a separate statement accusing the international community of failing to prevent attacks on Serb civilians, stating: "The terrorist gangs have not ceased attacking the army, the police, and inhabitants of Kosovo." [27]

The VJ continued pursuing remnants of the rebel group for most of December 15, and foreign reporters noted shelling near the ambush site through much of the day. [18] After mediation by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Yugoslav authorities handed the bodies of 33 militants over to the KLA for burial. [28] The militants were given heroes' funerals in the rebel-held village of Poljance, on a field dubbed the "Tomb of Heroes", [19] about 61 kilometres (38 mi) northwest of Pristina. [13] The funerals were attended by several thousand Albanians, including about 500 militants. [19]

The captured militants were initially taken to a jail in Prizren and later transported to a military prison in Niš. [29] On January 8, 1999, the KLA ambushed a convoy carrying rations to VJ personnel in Mitrovica, taking eight Yugoslav soldiers hostage. [30] [31] [32] [33] U.S. officials negotiated the soldiers' release five days later. In return, on January 23, Yugoslav authorities freed the nine militants. Almost simultaneously, the KLA released five elderly Serb civilians that it had taken hostage two days earlier. Yugoslav officials insisted that the two events were not linked. The KLA's taking of civilian hostages drew condemnation from Western diplomats, including the head of the KVM, William Walker, who told reporters: "... I think it was a very unwise and uncivilized thing for them to do to kidnap civilians." [34] Upon being released, the militants alleged they were mistreated and beaten while in custody and vowed to avenge the deaths of their fellow fighters. [29]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Everts, Daan W. (2020-06-25). Peacekeeping in Albania and Kosovo: Conflict Response and International Intervention in the Western Balkans, 1997 - 2002. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN   978-1-83860-449-3.
  2. 1 2 Adam LeBor (2002). Milosevic: A Biography. New York. p. 276. ISBN   978-0-300-10317-5.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  3. ↑ Miranda Vickers (1999). The Albanians: A Modern History. New York: I.B.Tauris. p. 97. ISBN   978-1-86064-541-9.
  4. ↑ James Summers (2011). "Kosovo: From Yugoslav Province to Disputed Independence". In James Summers (ed.). Kosovo: A Precedent?. Leiden, Netherlands: BRILL. p. 5. ISBN   978-90-474-2943-2.
  5. ↑ Jasminka Udovički; James Ridgeway (2000). Burn This House: The Making and Unmaking of Yugoslavia. Durham, North Carolina: Duke University Press. p. 322. ISBN   978-0-8223-2590-1.
  6. ↑ Judah, Tim (2002). Kosovo: War and Revenge. New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press. p. 137. ISBN   978-0-300-09725-2.
  7. ↑ Dušan Janjić (2012). "Kosovo under the Milošević Regime". In Charles W. Ingrao; Thomas A. Emmert (eds.). Confronting the Yugoslav Controversies: A Scholars' Initiative (2nd ed.). West Lafayette, Indiana: Purdue University Press. p. 293. ISBN   978-1-55753-617-4.
  8. ↑ Judah, pp. x, 127–30
  9. ↑ Judah, pp. 138–41
  10. ↑ Ron, James (2003). Frontiers and Ghettos: State Violence in Serbia and Israel. Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. 100. ISBN   978-0-520-93690-4.
  11. ↑ Judah, pp. 187–89
  12. ↑ Paul Watson (October 27, 1998). "Serbs Leave Kosovo as Deadline Closes In". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  13. 1 2 "Kosovo protests mar peace efforts". BBC. December 20, 1998. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  14. 1 2 3 Judah, p. 191
  15. 1 2 Bardos, Gordon (2000). "Federal Republic of Yugoslavia: Heading for the Abyss". In Rutland, Peter (ed.). Holding the Course. New York: M.E. Sharpe. p. 221. ISBN   0-7656-0360-8.
  16. 1 2 3 4 "Albanians killed in Kosovo border clash". CBC. December 15, 1998. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Thirty dead in Kosovo". BBC. December 14, 1998. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  18. 1 2 Guy Dinmore (December 16, 1998). "U.S. Envoy Makes Plea For Restraint In Kosovo". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  19. 1 2 3 Juliette Terzieff (December 27, 1998). "Warrior women of Kosovo die in action". The Sunday Times.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  20. ↑ "KDOM Daily Report". U.S. Department of State. December 14, 1998. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  21. 1 2 3 4 5 Deborah Charles (December 15, 1998). "Kosovo Fighters Died Smuggling Weapons". Reuters.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  22. ↑ LeBor, p. 285
  23. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Guy Dinmore (December 15, 1998). "Kosovo Cease-fire Is Jeopardized By Killing Of 30 Rebels". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  24. 1 2 Dave Carpenter (15 December 1999). "Kosovo border clash leaves dozens dead". Ocala-Star Banner. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
  25. ↑ "Serb murder in Kosovo condemned". BBC. December 18, 1998. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  26. ↑ Judah, p. 192
  27. ↑ "Grave differences over Kosovo". BBC. December 16, 1998. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  28. ↑ "6 Kosovo Separatists Reportedly Held in Attack". Los Angeles Times. December 21, 1998. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  29. 1 2 Melissa Eddy (January 24, 1999). "Freed Albanians Ready to Fight". Associated Press.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  30. ↑ "Kosovo rebels kill 3 Serbs". The Associated Press . 9 January 1999. p. 1.
  31. ↑ "KOSOVO REBELS KILL 3 SERB POLICE, SEIZE 8 SOLDIERS IN AMBUSHES". Chicago Tribune . 9 January 1999. p. 6.
  32. ↑ "Serb forces gear up after rebels kill 3 officers, seize 8 soldiers". Deseret News . The Associated Press. 9 January 1999. p. 6.
  33. ↑ Bird, Chris (1999-01-09). "Rebel killings put Kosovo truce at risk". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2023-11-29.
  34. ↑ "Serbs Report Prisoner Exchange in Kosovo". Los Angeles Times. January 24, 1999. Retrieved August 9, 2015.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kosovo War</span> 1998–1999 armed conflict in Kosovo

The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It was fought between the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which controlled Kosovo before the war, and the Kosovo Albanian separatist militia known as the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). The conflict ended when the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) intervened by beginning air strikes in March 1999 which resulted in Yugoslav forces withdrawing from Kosovo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kosovo Liberation Army</span> Ethnic-Albanian nationalist paramilitary organization (1992–1999)

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liberation Army of Preševo, Medveđa and Bujanovac</span> Albanian militant group (1999–2001)

The Liberation Army of Preševo, Medveđa and Bujanovac was an Albanian militant insurgent group fighting for separation from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia for three municipalities: Preševo, Medveđa, and Bujanovac, home to most of the Albanians in south Serbia, adjacent to Kosovo. Of the three municipalities, two have an ethnic Albanian majority, whilst Medveđa has a significant minority of them.

The Račak massacre or Račak operation was the massacre of 45 Kosovo Albanians that took place in the village of Račak in central Kosovo in January 1999. The massacre was perpetrated by Serbian security forces in response to Albanian separatist activity in the region. The Serbian government refused to let a war crimes prosecutor visit the site, and maintained that the casualties were all members of the rebel Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) killed in combat with state security forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Horseshoe</span> 1999 alleged plan to ethnically cleanse Kosovo Albanians

Operation Horseshoe was a 1999 alleged plan to ethnically cleanse Albanians in Kosovo. The plan was to be carried out by Serbian police and the Yugoslav army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adem Jashari</span> Commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army (1955–1998)

Adem Jashari was one of the founders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), a Kosovo Albanian separatist militia which fought for the secession of Kosovo from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ismet Jashari</span> Kosovar military commander (1967–1998)

Ismet Jashari also known as Commander Kumanova, was an Albanian commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) who was killed on 25 August 1998 during the fighting with Serbian forces in Kleçkë, Kosovo. The Ismet Jashari-Kumanova Brigade of the KLA was named in his memory. After the Kosovo War, he was declared Hero of Kosovo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Belaćevac Mine</span> Battle of the Kosovo War

The Battle of Belaćevac Mine was a week-long clash between the Yugoslav Army (VJ), Serbian police (MUP) and the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) in June 1998, during the Kosovo War. It was fought over the Belaćevac coal mine, which powered two generating stations that supplied electricity to most of Kosovo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Junik</span> Battle of the Kosovo War

The Battle of Junik was fought during the Kosovo War between the ethnic Albanian paramilitary organization known as the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and the security forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia over the town of Junik in western Kosovo.

The Battle of Glođane was fought during the Kosovo War in the village of Glođane first on March 24, 1998, and again later on August 11, 1998. It involved the Kosovo Albanian militant group known as the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and the Yugoslav military and Serbian police forces. The clashes signified a sequence of military offensives initiated by the Yugoslav army and Serbian police to counter the increasing presence of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) within Kosovo Albanian villages.

The Panda Bar massacre, alternatively known as the Panda Café attack, was an attack on Serbian civilians in the city of Peć, Kosovo on the night of 14–15 December 1998. Two masked men opened fire into a coffeehouse, killing six Serb youths and wounding 15 others.

The Battle of Podujevo was fought in the Kosovo War between the Yugoslav Special Anti-Terrorist Unit and KLA insurgents in the village of Llapashtica e Epërme in the municipality of Podujevo. These events started after the death of a policeman who was killed by KLA militants in the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Insurgency in Kosovo (1995–1998)</span> Event during the Yugoslav Wars

The Insurgency in Kosovo began in 1995, following the Dayton Agreement that ended the Bosnian War. In 1996, the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) began attacking Serbian governmental buildings and police stations. This insurgency would lead to the more intense Kosovo War in February 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">December 3, 1998, Albanian–Yugoslav border clash</span>

On 3 December 1998 a Yugoslav border patrol was attacked by a group of nine Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) attempting to illegally cross the border between Albania and Yugoslavia. Eight militants were killed in the ensuing exchange, while the border patrol suffered no casualties. This was the most serious armed incident in Kosovo since a truce between the KLA and the Yugoslav security forces had taken effect that October.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">April 23, 1998, Albanian–Yugoslav border ambush</span>

On the morning of April 23, 1998, a band of Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) fighters was ambushed by a group of Yugoslav Army (VJ) border guards near the Košare outpost, just west of Deçan. The fighters had been trying to smuggle weapons and supplies into Kosovo via northern Albania. Nineteen were killed in the ensuing attack, and a further two were captured. The VJ did not sustain any casualties. Some of the militants retreated back to Albania, while others managed to break through the ambush and make it past the Yugoslav border, into Kosovo. Following the clash, the VJ confiscated a large quantity of arms that the militants had been transporting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">July 18, 1998, Albanian–Yugoslav border clashes</span>

On July 18, 1998 a Yugoslav Army (VJ) border patrol ambushed a column of Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) insurgents and foreign mujahideen just west of Deçan, on the frontier between Albania and Yugoslavia. The ambush resulted in the deaths of four KLA fighters and 18 mujahideen, most of whom were citizens of Saudi Arabia. Twelve militants were wounded, and a further six were arrested by the Yugoslav authorities and charged with illegal entry and gunrunning. The VJ reported seizing a significant amount of arms and ammunition that the militants had been smuggling. One Yugoslav border guard was seriously wounded in the clash.

Timeline of the Kosovo War. Abbreviations:

Operation Fenix was an operation launched by militants of the KLA's "cobra" unit, which conducted two ambushes out of Albanian territory near the border outpost of Koshare on Yugoslav forces. Six Yugoslav Army personnel were killed. The KLA suffered no casualties, and captured Yugoslav ammunition, equipment and looted the dead soldiers.

Operation Eagle was a military operation by the "Kobra Unit" of the Kosovo Liberation Army in the villages of Voksh and Sllup against Yugoslav forces. The engagement resulted in the deaths of six Yugoslav policemen and soldiers, meanwhile the KLA sufferred no casualties. The KLA also managed to capture Yugoslav ammunition and equipment, before withdrawing back to the Yugoslav-Albanian border.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KLA Summer offensive (1998)</span>

The KLA's “Summer” offensive was a large scale offensive conducted by the KLA during the summer of 1998. It was fought in Kosovo between the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) against the Yugoslav Army and MUP.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.