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{{cquote|Upon my arrival the war increasingly evolved into a mid intensity conflict as ambushes, the encroachment of critical lines of communication and the [KLA] kidnapping of security forces resulted in a significant increase in government casualties which in turn led to major Yugoslavian reprisal security operations... By the beginning of March these terror and counter-terror operations led to the inhabitants of numerous villages fleeing, or being dispersed to either other villages, cities or the hills to seek refuge... The situation was clearly that KLA provocations, as personally witnessed in ambushes of security patrols which inflicted fatal and other casualties, were clear violations of the previous October's agreement [and [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1199]]].}}
{{cquote|Upon my arrival the war increasingly evolved into a mid intensity conflict as ambushes, the encroachment of critical lines of communication and the [KLA] kidnapping of security forces resulted in a significant increase in government casualties which in turn led to major Yugoslavian reprisal security operations... By the beginning of March these terror and counter-terror operations led to the inhabitants of numerous villages fleeing, or being dispersed to either other villages, cities or the hills to seek refuge... The situation was clearly that KLA provocations, as personally witnessed in ambushes of security patrols which inflicted fatal and other casualties, were clear violations of the previous October's agreement [and [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1199]]].}}

According to the report of the U.S. Committee for Refugees:<ref name=allan>{{cite book | title= Reporting war: journalism in wartime |author= Allan, Stuart and Zelizer, Barbie |publisher= Routledge |year= 2004|isbn= 0-415-33998-7 |url= http://books.google.com/?id=skdoYDs1e8AC&pg=PA178|page=178 }}</ref>

{{cquote|Kosovo Liberation Army...attacks aimed at trying to 'cleanse' Kosovo of its ethnic Serb population.}}

The Yugoslav [[Red Cross]] had estimated a total of 30,000 refugees and [[internally displaced person]]s (IDPs) from Kosovo, most of whom were Serb. The UNHCR estimated the figure at 55,000 refugees who had fled to [[Montenegro]] and [[Central Serbia]], most of whom were Kosovo Serbs:

{{cquote|Over 90 mixed villages in Kosovo have now been emptied of Serb inhabitants and other Serbs continue leaving, either to be displaced in other parts of Kosovo or fleeing into central Serbia.}}

The NATO North Atlantic Council had stressed that KLA was "the main initiator of the violence" and that it had "launched what appears to be a deliberate campaign of provocation".<ref name=allan />{{Verify credibility|date=May 2012}}


===Foreign volunteers===
===Foreign volunteers===
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Elements of the KLA are also responsible for post-conflict attacks on Serbs, Roma, and other non-Albanians, as well as ethnic Albanian political rivals... widespread and systematic burning and looting of homes belonging to Serbs, Roma, and other minorities and the destruction of Orthodox churches and monasteries... combined with harassment and intimidation designed to force people from their homes and communities... elements of the KLA are clearly responsible for many of these crimes.<ref name=hrw1/></blockquote>
Elements of the KLA are also responsible for post-conflict attacks on Serbs, Roma, and other non-Albanians, as well as ethnic Albanian political rivals... widespread and systematic burning and looting of homes belonging to Serbs, Roma, and other minorities and the destruction of Orthodox churches and monasteries... combined with harassment and intimidation designed to force people from their homes and communities... elements of the KLA are clearly responsible for many of these crimes.<ref name=hrw1/></blockquote>

The KLA engaged in [[tit-for-tat]] attacks against Serbian nationalists in Kosovo, reprisals against ethnic Albanians who "collaborated" with the Serbian government, and bombed police stations and cafes known to be frequented by Serb officials, killing innocent civilians in the process. Most of its activities were funded by drug running, though its ties to community groups and Albanian exiles gave it local popularity.<ref name=cfr>[[Council on Foreign Relations]], [http://www.cfr.org/publication/10159/ Terrorist Groups and Political Legitimacy], 16 March 2006</ref>

The Yugoslav authorities regarded the KLA as a [[terrorist]] group,<ref name=mipt>{{Wayback |date=20070402053051 |url=http://www.tkb.org/Group.jsp?groupID=3517 |title=MIPT Terrorism Knowledge Base}} using a web.archive.org copy of 2 April 2007</ref> though many European governments did not. The Serbian government also reported that the KLA had killed and kidnapped no fewer than 3,276 civilians of various ethnic descriptions including some Albanians.<ref name=ZAT>[http://www.arhiva.srbija.gov.rs/news/2002-07/08/325076.html Victims of the Albanian terrorism in Kosovo-Metohija (Killed, kidnapped, and missing persons, January 1998 – November 2001)]<br>[http://www.arhiva.srbija.gov.rs/vesti/2002-05/25/326656.html Žrtve albanskog terorizma na Kosovu i Metohiji (Ubijena, oteta i nestala lica, januar 1998 – novembar 2001)]. arhiva.srbija.gov.rs</ref>
[[File:Weapons confiscated from the Kosovo Liberation Army (1999).JPEG|thumb|Weapons confiscated from the KLA, July 1999]]
[[File:Weapons confiscated from the Kosovo Liberation Army (1999).JPEG|thumb|Weapons confiscated from the KLA, July 1999]]


The exact number of victims of the KLA is not known. According to a Serbian government report, from 1 January 1998 to 10 June 1999 the KLA killed 988 people and kidnapped 287; in the period from 10 June 1999 to 11 November 2001, when NATO took control in Kosovo, 847 were reported to have been killed and 1,154 kidnapped. This comprised both civilians and security force personnel: of those killed in the first period, 335 were civilians, 351 soldiers, 230 police and 72 were unidentified; by nationality, 87 of the killed civilians were Serbs, 230 Albanians, and 18 of other nationalities. Following the withdrawal of Serbian and Yugoslav security forces from Kosovo in June 1999, all casualties were civilians, the vast majority being Serbs.<ref name=ZAT/> According to Human Rights Watch, as “many as one thousand Serbs and Roma have been murdered or have gone missing since June 12, 1999.”<ref name=hrw1>[http://www.hrw.org/reports/2001/kosovo/undword.htm UNDER ORDERS: War Crimes in Kosovo. executive summary]. hrw.org (2001)</ref>
The exact number of victims of the KLA is not known. According to a Serbian government report, from 1 January 1998 to 10 June 1999 the KLA killed 988 people and kidnapped 287; in the period from 10 June 1999 to 11 November 2001, when NATO took control in Kosovo, 847 were reported to have been killed and 1,154 kidnapped. This comprised both civilians and security force personnel: of those killed in the first period, 335 were civilians, 351 soldiers, 230 police and 72 were unidentified; by nationality, 87 of the killed civilians were Serbs, 230 Albanians, and 18 of other nationalities. Following the withdrawal of Serbian and Yugoslav security forces from Kosovo in June 1999, all casualties were civilians, the vast majority being Serbs.<ref name=ZAT/> According to Human Rights Watch, as “many as one thousand Serbs and Roma have been murdered or have gone missing since June 12, 1999.”<ref name=hrw1>[http://www.hrw.org/reports/2001/kosovo/undword.htm UNDER ORDERS: War Crimes in Kosovo. executive summary]. hrw.org (2001)</ref>

The [[Podujevo bus bombing]] was a terrorist attack on a civilian bus in a Serb-populated area near the town of Podujevo, Kosovo on 16 February 2001 by Kosovar Albanian extremists.

[[Carla Del Ponte]], a long-time [[International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia|ICTY]] chief prosecutor, claimed in her book ''[[The Hunt: Me and the War Criminals]]'' that there were [[Kosovo organ theft|instances of organ trafficking]] in 1999 after the end of the [[Kosovo War]]. These allegations were dismissed by Kosovar and Albanian authorities.<ref name=telegraph>[[The Daily Telegraph]], [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/04/11/wserb111.xml&CMP=ILC-mostviewedbox Serb prisoners 'were stripped of their organs in Kosovo war'], 14 April 2008</ref> The allegations have been rejected by Kosovar authorities as fabrications while the ICTY has said "no reliable evidence had been obtained to substantiate the allegations".<ref>[http://www.un.org/icty/briefing/2008/pb080416.htm International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia – TPIY]. Un.org (5 March 2007). Retrieved on 14 March 2013.</ref>


In early 2011 the European Parliament’s [[Committee on Foreign Affairs (EU)|Committee on Foreign Affairs]] viewed a report by [[Dick Marty]] on the alleged criminal activities and [[Organ theft in Kosovo|alleged organ harvesting controversy]]; however, the Members of Parliament criticised the report, citing lack of evidence, and Marty responded that a [[witness protection]] program was needed in Kosovo before he could provide more details on witnesses because their lives were in danger.<ref name=politician>[http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2011/0311/1224291885150.html Politician angers MEPs over Kosovo organ harvesting claim] (''[[The Irish Times]]'')</ref> Investigations are still being done.
In early 2011 the European Parliament’s [[Committee on Foreign Affairs (EU)|Committee on Foreign Affairs]] viewed a report by [[Dick Marty]] on the alleged criminal activities and [[Organ theft in Kosovo|alleged organ harvesting controversy]]; however, the Members of Parliament criticised the report, citing lack of evidence, and Marty responded that a [[witness protection]] program was needed in Kosovo before he could provide more details on witnesses because their lives were in danger.<ref name=politician>[http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2011/0311/1224291885150.html Politician angers MEPs over Kosovo organ harvesting claim] (''[[The Irish Times]]'')</ref> Investigations are still being done.
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Kosovo Liberation Army members were sentenced for murdering 32 non-Albanian civilians.<ref>[http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=124420 Bulgaria: Serbia Jails 9 Ethnic Albanian Guerrillas for Crimes in Kosovo – novinite.com – Sofia News Agency]. Novinite.com (22 January 2011). Retrieved on 14 March 2013.</ref> In the same case, another 35 civilians are missing while 153 were tortured and released.
Kosovo Liberation Army members were sentenced for murdering 32 non-Albanian civilians.<ref>[http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=124420 Bulgaria: Serbia Jails 9 Ethnic Albanian Guerrillas for Crimes in Kosovo – novinite.com – Sofia News Agency]. Novinite.com (22 January 2011). Retrieved on 14 March 2013.</ref> In the same case, another 35 civilians are missing while 153 were tortured and released.


== Freedom Fighters ==
==Status as a terrorist group==
The Yugoslav authorities, under Slobodan Milošević, regarded the KLA as a terrorist group. In February 1998, U.S. President [[Bill Clinton]]'s special envoy to the Balkans, Robert Gelbard, condemned both the actions of the Serb government and of the KLA, and described the KLA as "without any questions, a terrorist group".<ref name="republican">[http://www.senate.gov/~rpc/releases/1999/fr033199.htm The Kosovo Liberation Army: Does Clinton Policy Support Group with Terror, Drug Ties? From 'Terrorists' to 'Partners'], presentation of the Republican Policy Committee to the U.S. Senate, 31 March 1999</ref><ref name=cofr>[http://www.cfr.org/publication/10159/#4 Terrorist Groups and Political Legitimacy] Council on Foreign Relations</ref><ref name="nened">{{Cite web |title= The KLA – terrorists or freedom fighters? |author= Nened Sebak |date= 28 June 1998 |work= BBC |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/121818.stm |quote= But only a few months ago Ambassador Gelbard described the KLA as a terrorist organisation. "I know a terrorist when I see one and these men are terrorists," he said earlier this year.}}</ref> [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1160|UN resolution 1160]] took a similar stance.<ref name="UN1160">[http://www.un.org/peace/kosovo/98sc1160.htm Resolution 1160 (1998)], 31 March 1998, adopted in the 3868th meeting of the Security Council]</ref><ref name="gamble">{{Cite book |title= NATO's gamble: combining diplomacy and airpower in the Kosovo crisis, 1998–1999|author= Henriksen, Dag |publisher= Naval Institute Press |year= 2007 |isbn= 978-1-59114-355-0 |pages= 126–129 |url= http://books.google.com/books?id=XYBURe35uCQC |quote= [February statements] 'We condemn very strongly terrorist actions in Kosovo. The UÇK (KLA) is, without any questions, a terrorist group.' [March statements] while it has committed 'terrorist acts,' if had 'not been classified legally by the U.S. Government as a terrorist organization'}}</ref>

But the 1997 US Department's terrorist list hadn't included the KLA.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Timothy W. Crawford |title=Pivotal Deterrence and the Kosovo War: Why the Holbrooke Agreement Failed|journal=Political Science Quarterly |jstor=798219|volume=116|issue =4| pages =499–523|year=2001|doi=10.2307/798219}}</ref> In March 1998, just one month later Gerbald had to modify his statements to say that KLA had not been classified legally by the U.S. government as a terrorist group,<ref name="gamble"/> and the US government approached the KLA leaders to make them interlocutors with the Serbs.<ref name="reveron68" /><ref name=gibbs>{{cite book|author=Gibbs, David N.|title=First Do No Harm: Humanitarian Intervention and the Destruction of Yugoslavia|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=4E7hUjI-MmsC&pg=PA181|year=2009|publisher=Vanderbilt University Press|isbn=978-0-8265-1645-9|pages=181–}}</ref>{{Verify credibility|date=May 2012}} A Wall Street Journal article claimed later that the US government had in February 1998 removed the KLA from the list of terrorist organisations,<ref name="reveron68"/><ref name="gri">[http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/BIS111A.html War on terrorism skipped the KLA] National Post, 13 November 2001, Centre for Research on Globalisation (CRG)</ref><ref>{{cite web |title= Al Qaeda's Balkan Links |work= The Wall Street Journal Europe |date= 1 November 2001 |url=http://www.balkanpeace.org/index.php?index=article&articleid=12224|author= Kurop, Marcia Christoff }}</ref> a removal that has never been confirmed.<ref name="gamble" /> France didn't delist the KLA until late 1998, after strong US and UK lobbying.<ref name="reveron82">Reveron, [http://books.google.com/books?id=OjvdsfiWwJcC&pg=PA82 p. 82 (footnote 24 from page 69)]</ref> KLA is still present in the [[MIPT Terrorism Knowledge Base]] list of terrorist groups,<ref name=mipt/> and is listed as an inactive terrorist organisation by the [[National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Terrorist Organization Profile: Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) | publisher = National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism | url = http://www.start.umd.edu/data/tops/terrorist_organization_profile.asp?id=3517 }}</ref>


During the war, the KLA troops collaborated with the NATO troops, and they were qualified by NATO as "freedom fighters". In late 1999 the KLA was disbanded and its members entered the [[Kosovo Protection Corps]].<ref name="reveron68">Reveron, p. 68</ref>
During the war, the KLA troops collaborated with the NATO troops, and they were qualified by NATO as "freedom fighters". In late 1999 the KLA was disbanded and its members entered the [[Kosovo Protection Corps]].<ref name="reveron68">Reveron, p. 68</ref>

== Drug and arms trafficking ==
The KLA has also been connected to [[drug trafficking|drugs]] and [[arms trafficking]],<ref>{{cite web| publisher=The Guardian| url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2000/mar/13/balkans| author=Maggie O'Kane| title=Kosovo drug mafia supply heroin to Europe| date=13 March 2000| accessdate=16 July 2013}}</ref> with it being responsible for 70% of the [[heroin]] smuggled into [[Western Europe]] in the 1990s.<ref>{{cite book| last=Ruppert| first=Michael C.| title=Crossing the Rubicon: The Decline of the American Empire at the End of the Age of Oil| publisher=New Society Publishers| year=2004 |isbn=978-1-55092-318-6|page=}}</ref> KLA member Agim Gashi was prosecuted in Italy for drug trafficking. Interpol's report in the US Congress of 2000:<ref>Statement of Ralf Mutschke, Assistant Director, Criminal Intelligence Directorate, Interpol, before the Committee on Judiciary, Subcommittee on Crime on 13 December 2000 entitled ‘The threat posed by the convergence of organized crime, drugs trafficking and terrorism’.</ref>

{{cquote|Albanian drug lords established elsewhere in Europe began contributing funds to the “national cause” in the 80s. From 1993 on, these funds were to a large extent invested in arms and military equipment for the KLA (UÇK) which made its first appearance in 1993… Of the almost 900 million DM which reached Kosovo between 1996 and 1999, half was thought to be illegal drug money.}}

==Tribunal for the KLA==
On April 14, 2014, the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo decided if the Kosovan parliament will vote on the establishment of a tribunal for war crimes of the KLA during the Kosovo War.<ref>{{cite news|title=Odluka o sudu za OVK u četvrtak?|publisher=B92.net|url=http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy=2014&mm=04&dd=14&nav_category=640&nav_id=836346}}</ref> According to ''[[Bota Sot]]'', Premier Minister [[Hashim Thaci]] will be the first to be prosecuted. Others include [[Xhavit Haliti]], [[Kadri Veseli]] and [[Azem Syla]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Tači prvi na optuženičkoj klupi?|publisher=B92.net|url=http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy=2014&mm=04&dd=19&nav_category=640&nav_id=838362}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==

Revision as of 17:57, 20 December 2014

Kosovo Liberation Army
Ushtria Çlirimtare e Kosovës
LeadersLKCK
Zahir Pajaziti  †
Adem Jashari  †
Agim Çeku
Fatmir Limaj
Ramush Haradinaj
Bekim Berisha  †
Rrustem "Remi" Mustafa[1]
Agim Ramadani  †
Dates of operation1996[2] – 1999[3] (formed in 1990[4] but relatively passive until 1996)
Active regionsKosovo, FR Yugoslavia
AlliesAlbania, NATO
OpponentsYugoslavia
Battles and warsKosovo War:

The Kosovo Liberation Army (abbreviated KLA; Albanian: Ushtria Çlirimtare e Kosovës—[UÇK] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help)) was an ethnic-Albanian paramilitary organisation which sought the separation of Kosovo from Yugoslavia during the 1990s. Its campaign against Yugoslav security forces precipitated a major Yugoslav military crackdown which led to the Kosovo War of 1998–1999. Military intervention by Yugoslav security forces led by Slobodan Milošević and Serb paramilitaries within Kosovo prompted an exodus of Kosovar Albanians and a refugee crisis that eventually caused NATO to intervene militarily in order to stop what was widely identified as an ongoing campaign of ethnic cleansing.[6][7] Later the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) legally found that Serbia "use[d] violence and terror to force a significant number of Kosovo Albanians from their homes and across the borders, in order for the state authorities to maintain control over Kosovo... This campaign was conducted by army and Interior Ministry police forces (MUP) under the control of FRY and Serbian authorities, who were responsible for mass expulsions of Kosovo Albanian civilians from their homes, as well as incidents of killings, sexual assault, and the intentional destruction of mosques."[8]

The conflict was ended by an "almost-imposed" negotiated agreement that requested the UN to take over the administration and political process, including local institutional building and determine the final status of the region.

In 1999 the KLA was officially disbanded and their members entered Kosovo Protection Corps, a civilian emergency protection body to replace the former KLA (foreseen by UNSC Resolution 1244) and Kosovo Police Force.[9] Some of the Kosovo Liberation Army leadership opted to enter politics leading key government positions at times.

History

First attacks

In February 1996 the KLA undertook a series of attacks against police stations and Yugoslav government officers, saying that they had killed Albanian civilians as part of an ethnic cleansing campaign.[10] Serbian authorities denounced the KLA as a terrorist organisation and increased the number of security forces in the region. This had the counter-productive effect of boosting the credibility of the embryonic KLA among the Kosovo Albanian population.

According to Roland Keith, a field office director of the OSCE's Kosovo Verification Mission:[11]

Upon my arrival the war increasingly evolved into a mid intensity conflict as ambushes, the encroachment of critical lines of communication and the [KLA] kidnapping of security forces resulted in a significant increase in government casualties which in turn led to major Yugoslavian reprisal security operations... By the beginning of March these terror and counter-terror operations led to the inhabitants of numerous villages fleeing, or being dispersed to either other villages, cities or the hills to seek refuge... The situation was clearly that KLA provocations, as personally witnessed in ambushes of security patrols which inflicted fatal and other casualties, were clear violations of the previous October's agreement [and United Nations Security Council Resolution 1199].

Foreign volunteers

The KLA included in its ranks foreign volunteers from Italy, the UK, Germany, Albania, and the US[12] and France.[13] 30–40 Volunteers from the Croatian Forces International Volunteers Association also participated in training KLA troops.[14]

The KLA usually rewarded its international volunteers after service with passage home, as a gesture of thanks.[15]

Aftermath (post-1999)

UÇK monument in Deçan

After the war, the KLA was transformed into the Kosovo Protection Corps, which worked alongside NATO forces patrolling the province.[16] The KLA legacy remains powerful within Kosovo. Its former members still play a major role in Kosovar politics.

Ali Ahmeti organised the NLA that fought in the Insurgency in the Republic of Macedonia, of former KLA fighters from Kosovo and Macedonia, Albanian insurgents from Preševo, Medveđa and Bujanovac in Serbia, young Albanian radicals and nationalists from Macedonia, and foreign mercenaries.[17] The acronym was the same as KLA's in Albanian.[17]

Its former political head Hashim Thaçi is now the leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo and the Prime Minister of Kosovo since January 2008.

The KLA's former military head, Agim Çeku, after the war became Prime Minister of Kosovo.

Ramush Haradinaj, a former KLA commander, served briefly as Prime Minister of Kosovo before he turned himself into the ICTY at The Hague to stand trial on war crimes charges,[18] and was later acquitted.

Fatmir Limaj, one of the senior commanders of the KLA, was also tried at The Hague, and was acquitted of all charges in November 2005.[19]

Hajredin Bala, an ex-KLA prison guard, was sentenced on 30 November 2005 to 13 years’ imprisonment for the mistreatment of three prisoners at the Llapushnik prison camp, his personal role in the "maintenance and enforcement of the inhumane conditions" of the camp, aiding the torture of one prisoner, and of participating in the murder of nine prisoners from the camp who were marched to the Berisha Mountains on 25 or 26 July 1998 and killed. Bala appealed the sentence and the appeal is still pending.[20]

Foreign support

Members of the Kosovo Liberation Army turn over their weapons to U.S. Marines

In 1996 the British weekly The European carried an article by a French expert stating that "German civil and military intelligence services have been involved in training and equipping the rebels with the aim of cementing German influence in the Balkan area. (...) The birth of the KLA in 1996 coincided with the appointment of Hansjoerg Geiger as the new head of the BND (German secret Service). (...) The BND men were in charge of selecting recruits for the KLA command structure from the 500,000 Kosovars in Albania."[21] Former senior adviser to the German parliament Matthias Küntzel tried to prove later on that German secret diplomacy had been instrumental in helping the KLA since its creation.[22]

James Bissett, Canadian Ambassador to Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Albania, wrote in 2001 that media reports indicate that "as early as 1998, the Central Intelligence Agency assisted by the British Special Air Service were arming and training Kosovo Liberation Army members in Albania to foment armed rebellion in Kosovo. (...) The hope was that with Kosovo in flames NATO could intervene ..."[23][clarification needed] According to Tim Judah, KLA representatives had already met with American, British, and Swiss intelligence agencies in 1996, and possibly "several years earlier"[24] and according to The Sunday Times, "American intelligence agents have admitted they helped to train the Kosovo Liberation Army before NATO's bombing of Yugoslavia".[25] Intelligence agents denied, however, that they were involved in arming the KLA.

American Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher, while opposed to American ground troops in Kosovo, advocated for America providing support to the Kosovo Liberation to help them gain their freedom.[26] He was honored by the Albanian American Civic League at a New Jersey located fundraising event on 23 July 2001. President of the League, Joseph J. DioGuardi, praised Rohrabacher for his support to the Kosovo Liberation Army, saying "He was the first member of Congress to insist that the United States arm the Kosovo Liberation Army, and one of the few members who to this day publicly supports the independence of Kosovo."[27] Rohrabacher gave a speech in support of American equipping the KLA with weaponry, comparing it to French support of America in the Revolutionary War, saying "Based on our own experience, the Kosovo Liberation Army should have been armed." "If the U.S. had armed the KLA in 1998, we would not be where we are today. The 'freedom fighters' would have secured their freedom and Kosovo would be independent."[28][29]

Reported abuses

There have been reports of war crimes committed by the KLA both during and after the conflict. These have been directed against Serbs, other ethnic minorities (primarily the Roma) and against ethnic Albanians accused of collaborating with Serb authorities.[30] According to a 2001 report by Human Rights Watch (HRW):

The KLA was responsible for serious abuses… including abductions and murders of Serbs and ethnic Albanians considered collaborators with the state. Elements of the KLA are also responsible for post-conflict attacks on Serbs, Roma, and other non-Albanians, as well as ethnic Albanian political rivals... widespread and systematic burning and looting of homes belonging to Serbs, Roma, and other minorities and the destruction of Orthodox churches and monasteries... combined with harassment and intimidation designed to force people from their homes and communities... elements of the KLA are clearly responsible for many of these crimes.[31]

Weapons confiscated from the KLA, July 1999

The exact number of victims of the KLA is not known. According to a Serbian government report, from 1 January 1998 to 10 June 1999 the KLA killed 988 people and kidnapped 287; in the period from 10 June 1999 to 11 November 2001, when NATO took control in Kosovo, 847 were reported to have been killed and 1,154 kidnapped. This comprised both civilians and security force personnel: of those killed in the first period, 335 were civilians, 351 soldiers, 230 police and 72 were unidentified; by nationality, 87 of the killed civilians were Serbs, 230 Albanians, and 18 of other nationalities. Following the withdrawal of Serbian and Yugoslav security forces from Kosovo in June 1999, all casualties were civilians, the vast majority being Serbs.[32] According to Human Rights Watch, as “many as one thousand Serbs and Roma have been murdered or have gone missing since June 12, 1999.”[31]

In early 2011 the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs viewed a report by Dick Marty on the alleged criminal activities and alleged organ harvesting controversy; however, the Members of Parliament criticised the report, citing lack of evidence, and Marty responded that a witness protection program was needed in Kosovo before he could provide more details on witnesses because their lives were in danger.[33] Investigations are still being done.

Kosovo Liberation Army members were sentenced for murdering 32 non-Albanian civilians.[34] In the same case, another 35 civilians are missing while 153 were tortured and released.

Freedom Fighters

During the war, the KLA troops collaborated with the NATO troops, and they were qualified by NATO as "freedom fighters". In late 1999 the KLA was disbanded and its members entered the Kosovo Protection Corps.[35]

See also

References

  1. ^ Albanian Terrorism and Oraganized Crime in Kosovo and Metohija (K&M). White paper published by the Serbian government, September 2003. wordpress.com
  2. ^ DCI Statement: Current and Projected National Security Threats – Central Intelligence Agency. Cia.gov. Retrieved on 14 March 2013.
  3. ^ "Kosovo one year on". BBC News. 16 March 2000. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
  4. ^ Kosovo. CIA – The World Factbook. Cia.gov. Retrieved on 14 March 2013.
  5. ^ Hockenos, Paul (2003). Homeland Calling: Exile Patriotism & the Balkan Wars. Cornell University Press. p. 255. ISBN 0-8014-4158-7.
  6. ^ UNDER ORDERS: War Crimes in Kosovo – 4. March–June 1999: An Overview. Hrw.org. Retrieved on 14 March 2013.
  7. ^ Perlez, Jane (24 March 1999). "Conflict In The Balkans: The Overview; Nato Authorizes Bomb Strikes; Primakov, In Air, Skips U.S. Visit". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
  8. ^ "Five Senior Serb Officials Convicted of Kosovo Crimes, One Acquitted". International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. 26 February 2009. Retrieved 24 February 2013.
  9. ^ Perritt, Henry H. (2008). Kosovo Liberation Army: The Inside Story of an Insurgency. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0-252-09213-8.
  10. ^ "Unknown Albanian 'liberation army' claims attacks", Agence France Presse, 17 February 1996
  11. ^ "Failure of Diplomacy, Returning OSCE Human Rights Monitor Offers A View From the Ground in Kosovo", The Democrat, May 1999, Roland Keith
  12. ^ IWPR Institute for War & Peace Reporting. Iwpr.net (11 November 2001). Retrieved on 29 June 2014.
  13. ^ IN THE HOUSE OF KLA RECRUITS – AIM Tirena, April 19, 1999. Aimpress.ch. Retrieved on 14 March 2013.
  14. ^ History of Foreign Volunteers in the Balkan Wars and Conflicts – Croatian Forces International Volunteers Association
  15. ^ News – Croatian Forces International Volunteers Association
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference cfr was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ a b Pål Kolstø (2009). Media Discourse and the Yugoslav Conflicts: Representations of Self and Other. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 173. ISBN 0754676293.
  18. ^ "Kosovo ex-PM war charges revealed". BBC News. 10 March 2005. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
  19. ^ Template:Wayback. trial-ch.org
  20. ^ Template:Wayback. The Hague, 21 April 2006 – Appeals Chamber
  21. ^ Fallgot, Roger (1998): "How Germany Backed KLA", in The European, 21 – 27 September. pp. 21–27.
  22. ^ Küntzel, Matthias (2002): Der Weg in den Krieg. Deutschland, die Nato und das Kosovo (The Road to War. Germany, Nato and Kosovo). Elefanten Press. Berlin, Germany. pp. 59–64 ISBN 3885207710.
  23. ^ Bissett, James (31 July 2001) Template:Wayback. Toronto Star
  24. ^ Judah, Tim (2002): Kosovo: War and Revenge. Yale University Press. New Haven, USA. p. 120 ISBN 0300097255
  25. ^ " CIA aided Kosovo guerrilla army" by Tom Walker and Aidan Laverty. THE SUNDAY TIMES, London, UK 12 March 2000
  26. ^ Congress (1999). Congressional Record. Government Printing Office. p. 7743. ISBN 9780160730078. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
  27. ^ The New American (4 May 2001). "Rohrabacher Shills for the KLA.(Rep Dana Rohrabacher and the Kosovo Liberation Army)(Brief Article)". The New American. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
  28. ^ The New American (24 September 2001). "Rohrabacher Shills for the KLA". The New American. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  29. ^ The New American (24 September 2001). "Rohrabacher Shills for the KLA". American Opinion Publishing, Inc. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  30. ^ Human Rights Watch, UNDER ORDERS:War Crimes in Kosovo. hrw.org (2001)
  31. ^ a b UNDER ORDERS: War Crimes in Kosovo. executive summary. hrw.org (2001)
  32. ^ Cite error: The named reference ZAT was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  33. ^ Politician angers MEPs over Kosovo organ harvesting claim (The Irish Times)
  34. ^ Bulgaria: Serbia Jails 9 Ethnic Albanian Guerrillas for Crimes in Kosovo – novinite.com – Sofia News Agency. Novinite.com (22 January 2011). Retrieved on 14 March 2013.
  35. ^ Reveron, p. 68

Bibliography

General references

  • "KLA Action Fuelled NATO Victory", Jane's Defence Weekly, 16 June 1999
  • "The KLA: Braced to Defend and Control", Jane's Intelligence Review, 1 April 1999
  • "Kosovo's Ceasefire Crumbles As Serb Military Retaliates", Jane's Intelligence Review, 1 February 1999
  • "Another Balkan Bloodbath? Part Two", Jane's Intelligence Review, 1 March 1998
  • "Albanians Attack Serb Targets", Jane's Defence Weekly, 4 September 1996
  • "The Kosovo Liberation Army and the Future of Kosovo", James H. Anderson and James Phillips, 13 May 1999, Heritage Foundation, Heritage Foundation (Washington, USA)
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