Yugoslav–Albanian border conflict (1998–1999)

The Yugoslav-Albanian Border conflict (1998-1999) was a series of clashes on border between Albania and Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The reason for the clashes started in 1995 due to the Insurgency in Kosovo, which started in 1995 and ended in 1998. These clashes would result in Kosovo War beginning. During the war, the KLA and the Yugoslavian army fought against each other, the KLA being focused and also taking various villages in south-western Kosovo, while Yugoslav troops made offensives onto major cities. The war resulted in the Kumanovo Agreement between the two sides and in Yugoslav troops killing a Mujahedeen officer and taking various KLA weapon shipments from Albania.

April 23, Yugoslav-Albanian border ambush
On the morning of April 23, 1998, a band of Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) fighters were ambushed by a much smaller group of the Yugoslav Army (VJ) border guards near the Košare outpost, just west of Dečani.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.

Villagers in northern Albania and western Kosovo reported hearing explosions in the vicinity of the ambush and seeing helicopters flying overhead for much of the following day. Albanian officials later alleged that two of these helicopters had violated the country's airspace, and Albania moved elite army units to the Yugoslav border in response. Yugoslav authorities accused Albania of backing the KLA. In response to the ambush, U.S. officials indicated that they would push for sanctions to be re-implemented against Yugoslavia, and said they would look to freeze the country's assets overseas. Some Albanian sources alleged that the men had not been ambushed, rather they were abducted and killed by Yugoslav security forces. Such claims could not be verified by Western journalists, and later that year, Amnesty International affirmed that the men were killed in an ambush while smuggling weapons across the border. According to Delić, at 05:45 on the morning of April 23, soldiers of the 53rd Border Battalion of the 549th Motorized Brigade encountered a group of 150–200 militants near the Košare outpost attempting to illegally enter Kosovo via northern Albania, just west of Dečani. Rebels had been massing at the Albanian–Yugoslav border for some time in anticipation of a renewed VJ offensive. Yugoslav authorities stated that the militants were "armed infiltrators" who had been undergoing training in military camps in Albania, and were attempting to smuggle weapons into Kosovo. According to Delić, the border patrol was greatly outnumbered by the militants. Armed with howitzers and rocket launchers, the patrol ambushed the armed group, sparking an intense exchange of fire. Clashes reportedly lasted all night, and the Kosovo Albanian residents of the border village of Batuša reported artillery fire and helicopters flying overhead the following day. The VJ reported suffering no casualties in the clash. Nineteen militants were killed, one was wounded and a further two were captured. It was the single deadliest war-related incident in Kosovo since the attack against Jashari's compound the previous month. Initial reports suggested that anywhere between 16 and 23 militants had been killed. Nine of the fallen militants were from the village of Erec, near Dečani, about 9.7 kilometres (6.0 mi) from the Albanian border. Delić identified the captured militants as Gazmend Tahiraj (an English professor from Erec; b. 1970) and Ibër Metaj (an agricultural technician from Erec; b. 1961). The remaining militants either managed to break through the ambush and reach Kosovo, or fled back to Albania, according to Delić. Footage taken by the military, and later broadcast on Yugoslav television, showed a field strewn with guns, ammunition and the bodies of three militants. The VJ reported seizing 4 tonnes (3.9 long tons; 4.4 short tons) of weapons and ammunition, including 120 cases of landmines.

July 18, 1998, Albanian–Yugoslav border clashes
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 Dečani, 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.

According to the Israeli historian Shaul Shay, the ambush represented the first clash of the Kosovo War between the VJ and foreign mujahideen. The Human Rights Watch advisor Fred C. Abrahams conjectures that the mujahideen may have deliberately been led into a trap by the KLA as part of a plan to reduce the influence of Islamic extremists within the organization's ranks.

Later in the day, 19 KLA fighters were wounded when the VJ shelled an arms smuggling route near the site of the ambush. They were evacuated by Albanian border guards and airlifted to receive treatment in the country's capital, Tirana. Albanian officials later alleged that two of the mortar rounds fired by Yugoslav troops had landed inside Albania, sparking further tension between the two countries. That afternoon, KLA militants attacked a Yugoslav border patrol, wounding another soldier.

In the early morning hours of Saturday, July 18, 1998, the mujahideen and KLA militants left their base in northern Albania and departed for Kosovo. Estimates of their strength vary. Human Rights Watch observer Fred C. Abrahams writes that the group consisted of 24 mujahideen and 200 KLA. The political scientist David L. Phillips and diplomat Nicholas Burns state that there were 22 mujahideen and 300 KLA fighters. Tim Judah, a journalist specializing in the Balkans, believes that the group may have been made up of as many as 700 militants. The VJ reported up to 1,000 militants. The group crossed the Albanian–Yugoslav border at Maja e Ujazës, northeast of Bajram Curri. The guerrillas were carrying a large quantity of arms and ammunition, which significantly impeded their movement and obliged them to move slowly across the Albanian–Yugoslav frontier. One hypothesis is that they were heading to reinforce KLA fighters battling for the town of Orahovac.

At 02:00, the column was ambushed by Yugoslav border guards between Mount Đeravica and the Košare border outpost, west of Dečani. The ambush occurred about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) from the Albanian border. A 122 mm (4.8 in) shell struck the column, killing eight. Clashes ensued, reportedly lasting until about 07:00. According to Abrahams, the ambush ultimately resulted in the deaths of 22 militants, including 18 mujahideen and four KLA. Twelve militants were wounded. Rabić was among those killed; documents recording the KLA and mujahideen's journey were recovered off his corpse by the Yugoslav authorities. Sixteen of the mujahideen were citizens of Saudi Arabia and one was a citizen of Yemen. Six were carrying forged Macedonian passports under ethnic Albanian pseudonyms. According to the Israeli historian Shaul Shay, the incident represented the first skirmish between the VJ and foreign mujahideen during the Kosovo War. It is unclear if the ambush came as a result of Yugoslav vigilance or if the KLA deliberately led the mujahideen into a trap with the goal of eliminating them and thus limiting the influence of Islamic extremists within the KLA's ranks. Survivors told monitors from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe that KLA fighters had led the mujahideen into a trap and fled. A Yugoslav lance corporal was seriously wounded in the exchange.

Most of the surviving militants either retreated to Albania or went into hiding along the border. As they fled, they dropped large quantities of Chinese-made weapons and munitions, which were subsequently seized by the Yugoslav authorities. Six militants, all citizens of Albania, were captured. They were charged with illegally crossing the border and gunrunning. Yugoslav officials stated that more than 10 tonnes (9.8 long tons; 11 short tons) of weapons and ammunition, including about 300 rifles, 60 machine guns, ten recoilless guns and a number of mortars, had been confiscated. Later that day, the VJ shelled a known arms trafficking route near the site of the ambush, wounding 19 KLA fighters. The militants were rescued by Albanian border guards and airlifted by helicopter to receive treatment in a Tirana hospital. At 13:30, two militants opened fire on a Yugoslav border patrol within 300 metres (980 ft) of the Albanian frontier. The border patrol returned fire and the militants fled to Albania. One Yugoslav soldier was slightly wounded.

Operation Fenix
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 robbed the dead soldiers.

The men, who were part of the KLA's "Cobra" unit, first prepared for the ambush by laying anti tank mines. Later, a Yugoslav tank came and detonated one of the anti tank mines. The blast killed one soldier and injured four others. A Yugoslav army helicopter was sent out to pick up the surviving soldiers, but it was fired upon by the KLA. A second attack happened shortly after, this time close to the Košare border outpost. The KLA fighters ambushed a Yugoslav army vehicle. They opened fire upon the vehicle and threw hand grenades at it, killing five Yugoslav soldiers and wounding two more. They then collected ammunition and equipment from the vehicle and soldiers and robbed the dead of their personal belongings. The KLA then opened fire to another helicopter which came to evacuate the wounded.

December 3, 1998, Albanian–Yugoslav border clash
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.

According to Yugoslav officials, nine Albanian militants who were illegally attempting to enter Yugoslavia opened fire on a group of border guards early in the morning of 3 December. Eight of the militants were killed in the ensuing shootout The border guards did not suffer any casualties. Albanian sources identified the fallen KLA militants as Skënder Hameli (from Prizren), Muhamet Malësori, Hysni Duraku, and Isak, Ismet, Sedat, Hyda and Sinan Hoti (all from Orahovac). Their bodies were recovered by Yugoslav authorities, and later taken to a Prizren morgue so that autopsies could be performed. With the post-mortems complete, the militants' bodies were handed over to their families, and were buried the following day in their native villages.

This was the most serious armed incident between the forces of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milošević and the KLA since a truce had been negotiated a month and a half earlier. Less than two weeks later, another altercation took place near the site of the clash, this time a Yugoslav Army ambush in which more than 30 KLA militants were killed.

December 14, 1998, Albanian–Yugoslav border ambush
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.

Within hours, a group of primarily unknown, but suspected KLA gunmen attacked a Serb-owned café in Peć, 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.

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.

At around 02:00 on the morning of Monday, December 14, 1998, 140 KLA militants tried to illegally cross the Albanian–Yugoslav border between the outposts of Gorožup and Liken, about 70 kilometres (43 mi) west of Pristina. They were coming from a base inside Albania, where they had been training. The subsequent ambush occurred near the village of Kušnin, just west of Prizren. 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. Fighting between the militants and the border guards continued for about five hours. Gunfire and explosions could reportedly be heard in three nearby villages. By 07:00, a total of 36 militants had been killed, twelve were wounded and a further nine were captured. 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. The Yugoslavs reported they had suffered no casualties, and stated that large quantities of "modern weapons", ammunition and supplies had been seized.

The VJ allowed a team of KVM observers to view the bodies, and photograph and record the names of the prisoners. 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. They identified one woman among the dead. The KVM reported that another woman had been taken prisoner. A KVM monitor told reporters: "Our initial feelings are that this was a normal military operation ... not a set-up." 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. Eight KLA fighters had been killed near the site of the ambush just eleven days prior.

Albania–Yugoslav border incident (April 1999)
From their positions on the Yugoslavian side of the border, soldiers of the Yugoslav Army fired at least 10 shells on the town of Krumë just before midnight, where refugees from Kosovo had taken shelter. Albanian Foreign Ministry spokesman Sokol Gjoka stated that the incident did not result in casualties on either side, and that three houses had been destroyed in the fighting. The same source claim the Yugoslav troops withdrew when Albanian forces from Tropojë reached the area.

9–13 April: KLA offensive
On 9 April 1999, at 03:00, an artillery barrage began from the Albanian side of the border, aimed in the direction of the Košare military outpost, which was occupied by the Yugoslav Army, in what became one of the bloodiest battles of the Kosovo War. The Albanians attacked in three directions, the first was towards Rrasa e Koshares, the second was towards the well-defended Košare outpost and the third was towards Maja Glava. Approximately 136 KLA soldiers reached the border and attacked Yugoslav positions. At that time less than 200 members of the Yugoslav Army were stationed at the front line. Bloody fighting ensued and lasted the whole day with 4 dead and one wounded on the Albanian side and 23 dead on the Yugoslav side. Later, the KLA seized the peak of Rrasa e Koshares and immediately began entrenching themselves. Serbian reports claimed that the KLA insurgents were assisted by British, French, German and Italian special forces.

The battle continued until the next morning. Then, with artillery support, the KLA took Maja Glava and continued to bombard the Košare Outpost, which resulted in the Yugoslav soldiers having to abandon their posts. At 19:00, members of the KLA entered the abandoned outpost and CNN and the British BBC broadcast images of a great number of KLA militants taking the outpost.[citation needed]

Members of the Yugoslav Forces then retreated towards the second line of defense above the outpost. Those positions were easier to defend. The next day, Yugoslav reserve troops arrived to relieve the First Army. One batch of KLA soldiers managed to cut the Yugoslav line of communications, and managed to disable one BOV armoured personnel carrier. During the night, the KLA attacked the Yugoslav Army at Opijaz, trying to shatter the resistance of the Yugoslav soldiers, but all of the attacks were unsuccessful and resulted in the Yugoslav Army inflicting heavy losses on the KLA insurgents. Meanwhile, the Yugoslavs managed to bring in their Special Forces and also a few artillery pieces.[citation needed]

On 13 April, the Yugoslav and Albanian armies clashed at the border near Krumë.

14 April: Yugoslav counter-offensive on Maja Glava
Albanian Army and KLA artillery continued to shell the Yugoslav Army's positions from Maja Glava and Rrasa e Koshares. The Yugoslav Army Headquarters decided to launch a sudden attack and surprise the enemy. On 14 April, Yugoslav troops attacked Maja Glava. The distance between the two enemy trenches wasn't longer than 50 meters. The Yugoslav Army was unable to take Maja Glava completely, but it prevented the Albanians' artillery from engaging them from their positions. The Maja Glava front was stabilized until the end of the war, without any changes on the lines.[citation needed]

In April, there weren't any changes on the front lines at Rrasa e Koshares and both sides suffered heavy losses.

10–11 May: Yugoslav offensive on Rrasa e Koshares
May began with several unsuccessful attacks by the Yugoslav Army to take back the Košare outpost. The attacks were made unsuccessful because of the constant artillery fire aimed at their positions. On 6 May, the Yugoslav Army counterattacked at Rrasa e Koshares, in an effort to halt the artillery bombardment. A bloody skirmish ensued, but the Yugoslav Army did not manage to take Rrasa e Koshares. On 10 May, the Yugoslav Army sent two T-55 tanks to help stabilize the offensive on Rrasa e Koshares. When the tanks penetrated the KLA's lines, they advanced over 100 meters into insurgent-held territory, but the KLA still managed to retain control of Rrasa e Koshares. During the night of 10/11 May, NATO bombers dropped dozens of bombs on the Yugoslav troops who had attacked KLA positions around Rrasa e Koshares. At least in two of these instances NATO dropped cluster bombs on Yugoslav army troops. In these attacks, NATO killed eight Yugoslav soldiers and one officer and managed to wound over 40. The KLA seized the opportunity to attack and fought the Yugoslav soldiers out of their positions and forced them back.[citation needed]

19–20 May: KLA attack near Junik
On 19 or 20 May, the KLA attacked a Yugoslav Special Forces' position near Junik. The KLA claimed to have managed to kill 14 Yugoslav Special Forces members after bitter fighting, whilst they suffered no losses. One of the killed was Russian citizen Bulakh Vitaly Glebovich. Documents retrieved from Glebovich's body showed he was an officer within the Russian Army, while Moscow confirmed that there was an officer by the same name who had been discharged from the Russian Army due to medical conditions with the name that the KLA had provided. The KLA presented this as evidence of Russian involvement in the war and sent a strong letter of protest to the Russian embassy in Tirana, demanding 5,000 firearms with ammunition as ransom for the retrieval of the body. Yugoslavia reported Glebovich was killed while fighting as a volunteer.

22 May: NATO friendly fire on Košare Outpost
On 22 May, NATO aircraft mistakenly bombed KLA positions. Some KLA commanders would later say that this was intentional to stop the KLA from making further gains. According to the KLA, seven of their fighters were killed and 27 wounded in the strike. After the war, PBS said that 67 people were reported as having died in the raid.

26–29 May: Initial KLA attack
The KLA offensive began at 04:00, the KLA attacked across a ten mile front from their operating areas, they were supported by barrages from the Albanian army and NATO air support. The KLA quickly overran Yugoslav observation points and watchtowers. Once past the border some units appear to have gone to the northern side of the mountain from which they could observarmored pee the city of Gjakova. Other units went over the mountain or to the forests south of it. When Colonel Delić realized an offensive was underway, he order his troops to entrench and responded to the attack with howitzer and mortars. He ordered his artillery to target the avenues leading to the mountain. These barrages compromised the KLA's offensive capabilities for the next two days. Despite extensive use of NATO air strikes, they did little to stop Yugoslav artillery from attacking KLA supply lines within Albania. As combat continued in the border settlements, KLA sources reported that they had overrun Planeja and were moving towards Gjonaj.

1 June: Increased NATO air strikes
On 1 June NATO aircraft launched around 150 sorties on VJ targets. NATO claimed to have hit 32 artillery pieces, 9 personnel carriers, 6 armored vehicles, 4 other military vehicles, 8 mortar positions and one SA6 surface to air missile. NATO throughout the campaign kept the KLA at an arms length. The KLA offensive had reached a stalemate, and the Yugoslav army appeared to be organizing a counter offensive. NATO fearing Milošević would get a better position at the negotiating table if they recaptured the gains made by the KLA stepped up their bombing campaign. According to Diana Priest Wesley Clark told his officers "That mountain is not going to get lost. I'm not going to have Serbs on that mountain. We'll pay for that hill with American blood if we don't help [the KLA] hold it. " Some NATO air strikes hit KLA positions, however the KLA did not suffer any casualties from NATO friendly fire at that time. These air strikes gave the KLA opportunities to attack. The Yugoslav army responded to this by shelling settlements at the border with Albania including the settlements of Pergolaj, Golaj and Krumë. These strikes didn't hit any civilian targets, but increased the refugee flows in Kukës and put pressure on the administration. Albania responded to this by mobilizing its army to the border and conducting a high profile live fire exercise.

6–9 June: Stalemate
On 6 June, the Yugoslav army launched a counter offensive near Planeja. As the Yugoslav soldiers advanced towards Planeja, they were hit by 82 unguided M-82 iron bombs from two B52,s and a B-1B. There are conflicting accounts about the casualties suffered by the Yugoslav troops. The Washington Post Foreign Service, which also caim that the strike involved the use of cluster munition, put the toll in "several hundreds". According to some testimonies from KLA fighters, they suffered serious casualties but according to other KLA reports most were able to get into safety before the impact. A ground inspection by German KFOR troops following the end of hostilities found no wreckages of any vehicles or tanks. On June 7, bombing and ground fighting continued around Paštrik. On June 9, the Yugoslav army retreated and the Military Technical Agreement was signed for the withdrawal of all Yugoslav forces from Kosovo.