Stratsin-Kumanovo operation

Stratsin-Kumanovo operation
Part of World War II in Yugoslavia
Date October 8 – November 14, 1944 Location Stracin, Kumanovo Result Allied victory
Belligerents
Bulgaria Yugoslav Partisans	Germany Albanian Volunteers
Commanders and leaders
Vladimir Stoychev	August Schmidhuber
Strength
1st Bulgarian Army 1st Sophia Infantry Division 2nd Thracian Infantry Division 11th Infantry Division 1st Sofia Guard Division 2nd Cavalry Division	21st SS Skanderbeg German Paratroopers 100 guns and mortars 35–40 tanks and vehicles
Casualties and losses
8900 casualties	~35% of total force

The Stratsin-Kumanovo operation (Bulgarian: Страцинско-Кумановска операция) was an offensive operation of the Bulgarian Army in Yugoslavia during the participation of Bulgaria in World War II against the Third Reich. It was held from 8 October to 14 November 1944 and was conducted in parallel with two another Bulgarian offensive operations in Yugoslavia: the Kosovo operation and the Bregalnitsa-Strumica operation. The operation was conducted in order to cross the road to retreat to a group of German armies "E" from Greece to central Europe. Bulgarian troops began an offensive on 8 October and the day entered into Kriva Palanka. Consistently they keep fighting for the Ridge of Strazhin (October 18) and the Stracin position, that was seized on October 25 with an airdrop. Fightings continues on the river Pčinja and in the city of Kumanovo (11 November) where parts of the Wehrmacht were defeated again. On 13 and 14 November parts of the First and Fourth Bulgarian Army entered Skopje , which performed their task. The onslaught continued as part of the Kosovo operation and on 19 November Bulgarian troops captured Pristina.^[1]

Citations