Attack on Prekaz

Attack on Prekaz
	Part of the Kosovo War
	; One of the houses attacked by the Serbian police
Date	5–7 March 1998
Location	Prekaz, FR Yugoslavia; (present-day Kosovo)
Result	Yugoslav victory
Belligerents
FR Yugoslavia	Kosovo Liberation Army
Commanders and leaders
Goran Radosavljević; Sreten Lukić;	Adem Jashari †; Hamëz Jashari †; Shaban Jashari †
Units involved
Yugoslav Army; Serbian police; Special Anti-Terrorist Unit	Kosovo Liberation Army
Strength
Unknown	28 militants
Casualties and losses
2 policemen killed; 7 wounded (Serbian claim)	28 killed
	50+ civilian members of the Jashari family killed; Up to 5,000 civilian refugees

42°46′N 20°49′E / 42.767°N 20.817°E / 42.767; 20.817

The Attack on Prekaz, also known as the Prekaz massacre,^[8] was an operation led by the Special Anti-Terrorism Unit of Serbia which lasted from 5 to 7 March 1998, whose goal was to eliminate Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) suspects and their families.^[9]^[10] During the operation, KLA leader Adem Jashari and his brother Hamëz were killed, along with nearly 60 other family members.

The attack was criticized by Amnesty International, which wrote in its report that: "all evidence suggests that the attack was not intended to apprehend armed Albanians, but to eliminate the suspects and their families." Serbia, on the other hand, claimed the raid was due to KLA attacks on police outposts.^[9]

^ Judah 2002, p. 140.
^ "Kosovo commemorates 25th anniversary of Prekaz Massacre". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
^ "Kosovo Marks 26th Anniversary of the Attack on Prekaz". Prishtina Insight. 8 March 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
^ "Kosovo Marks 25th Anniversary of the Attack on Prekaz". Prishtina Insight. 7 March 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
^ "Memorial Murdered Jashari Family - Prekaz - TracesOfWar.com". www.tracesofwar.com. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
^ "Sites — Stories". sites-stories.com. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
^ https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/balkans/stories/quiet030998.htm
^ "Behind the Kosovo crisis". BBC. 12 March 2000.
^ ^a ^b Krieger, Heike (2001). The Kosovo Conflict and International Law: An Analytical Documentation 1974–1999. Cambridge University Press. p. 96. ISBN 0-521-80071-4.
^ Abrahams & Andersen 1998, p. 27: "The police attacked prekaz and the Jashari compound again on March 5, 1998, this time in a more determined manner. All evidence suggests that the attack was not intended to apprehend armed Albanians, considered "terrorists" by the government, but as Amnesty international concluded in its report on violence in Drenica, "to eliminate the suspects and their families."

[FOOTNOTEJudah2002140-1] Judah 2002, p. 140.

[2] "Kosovo commemorates 25th anniversary of Prekaz Massacre". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 23 March 2024.

[3] "Kosovo Marks 26th Anniversary of the Attack on Prekaz". Prishtina Insight. 8 March 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2024.

[4] "Kosovo Marks 25th Anniversary of the Attack on Prekaz". Prishtina Insight. 7 March 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2024.

[5] "Memorial Murdered Jashari Family - Prekaz - TracesOfWar.com". www.tracesofwar.com. Retrieved 23 March 2024.

[6] "Sites — Stories". sites-stories.com. Retrieved 23 March 2024.

[7] ttps://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/balkans/stories/quiet030998.htm

[8] "Behind the Kosovo crisis". BBC. 12 March 2000.

[Krieger-9] Krieger, Heike (2001). The Kosovo Conflict and International Law: An Analytical Documentation 1974–1999. Cambridge University Press. p. 96. ISBN 0-521-80071-4.

[FOOTNOTEAbrahamsAndersen199827-10] Abrahams & Andersen 1998, p. 27: "The police attacked prekaz and the Jashari compound again on March 5, 1998, this time in a more determined manner. All evidence suggests that the attack was not intended to apprehend armed Albanians, considered "terrorists" by the government, but as Amnesty international concluded in its report on violence in Drenica, "to eliminate the suspects and their families."

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