Survivor recounts 1999 Drenica Valley execution attempt amid NATO bombing
Milazim Thaci survived a 1999 execution attempt in the Drenica Valley, recalling Serbian forces taunting him and his cousin Hashim Thaci.
Milazim Thaci recounted a harrowing episode from March 28, 1999, when Serbian police and soldiers seized a group of 33 men in the Drenica Valley, the heartland of the Kosovo one outlet Army, for execution. He managed to survive by concealing himself beneath the bodies of those who could not escape the gunfire. The captors taunted him, repeatedly asking, “Where’s Thaci?
Where’s NATO?” referring to his younger cousin, Hashim Thaci, who was a prominent KLA commander. Milazim remembered Hashim as a reserved, lanky youth who always showed deference to his elders. Today, Milazim resides in his home village of Buroje, located in the Skenderaj/Srbica district of Kosovo, where he shared his memories.
Why it matters
The testimony highlights personal trauma and the brutal tactics used during the 1999 Kosovo conflict.
How this story developed
- Aug 27 Former Bosnian Serb General Ratko Mladic Dies at 84 While In Hague Custody
- Aug 28 Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic criticised the UN court’s handling of Mladic’s death and appealed for his humanitarian release to die in Serbia.
- Sep 3 President Vucic publicly criticised the UN tribunal for denying a request to transfer Mladic to Serbia to die.
- Sep 4 Ratko Mladić died in The Hague while serving a life sentence and his body was repatriated to Belgrade.
- Sep 4 Serbian officials confirmed a state funeral will be held for Ratko Mladić.
- Sep 5 Details of the funeral schedule, locations and ceremony format were disclosed, including a limited ceremony at the House of Serbian Armed Forces and a public service at the Church of San Luca.
- Sep 5 Hundreds gathered in Belgrade to commemorate Mladic.
- Sep 7 Mladic’s body was interred in Belgrade following the funeral.
- Sep 7 EU enlargement commissioner Marta Kos called off her planned visit to Serbia.
- Sep 9 Bosnia expelled two Serbian diplomats and the United Kingdom summoned Serbia’s charge d’affaires.
- Sep 11 President Vucic said his absence was due to a meeting with Uzbekistan’s leader, so his son and senior ministers represented him at the funeral.
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