Lapušnik prison camp

Lapušnik or Llapushnik prison camp was a detention camp (also referred to as a prison) that was operated by the KLA, an Albanian militant organization, near the city of Glogovac in central Kosovo during the Kosovo War. It was operational in early 1998 and inmates were subject to intimidation, imprisonment, violence and murder. The victims were both Serbs and Albanians.[2][5]

Lapušnik or Llapushnik prison camp
Concentration camp
LocationLlapushnik, Kosovo, FR Yugoslavia
Operated byUÇK[1]
Original useimprisonment, cruel treatment, inhuman acts, and executions.
Operational1998
InmatesSerbs and Albanians[2][3]
Number of inmates35 +[3][4]
Killed23[2]

History

According to the early indictments: In early 1998, KLA forces under the command of Fatmir Limaj and Isak Musliu detained Serb and Albanian civilians from the municipalities of Štimlje, Glogovac and Lipljan for prolonged periods in the camp.[6] On 25 or 26 July, the KLA abandoned the camp when the Yugoslav army began its advance on Llapushnik.[6]

Indictments

In 2003, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) charged Fatmir Limaj, Isak Musliu and Haradin Bala.[7][8][9][3] In November 2005, all of the defendants except Haradin Bala were acquitted and released.[9] Bala, who was a guard at the camp, was sentenced to 13 years in prison for persecution on political, racial and religious grounds and for cruel treatment, murders and for his role in maintenance and enforcement of inhumane conditions in the camp.[8][10]

Although the exact number of inmates is unknown, 9 were executed in the mountains by Haradin Bala and two other guards[5]).

See also

Notes
a.   ^ Kosovo is the subject of a territorial dispute between the Republic of Kosovo and the Republic of Serbia. The Republic of Kosovo unilaterally declared independence on 17 February 2008, but Serbia continues to claim it as part of its own sovereign territory. The two governments began to normalise relations in 2013, as part of the 2013 Brussels Agreement. Kosovo is currently recognized as an independent state by 97 out of the 193 United Nations member states. In total, 112 UN member states recognized Kosovo at some point, of which 15 later withdrew their recognition.

References
  1. First case against Kosovo Albanians opens in The Hague.
  2. Human Rights Reporting By Pramod Mishra
  3. ICTY. Haradin Bala, Isak Musliu, and Agim Murtezi Transferred to the ICTY following their Indictment for Crimes against Humanity and War Crimes
  4. Skeletal Trauma: Identification of Injuries Resulting from Human Rights abuse
  5. ICTY document: Bala, p. 2
  6. ICTY, p.3
  7. Erin H. Kimmerle, José Pablo Baraybar, Identification of Injuries Resulting from Human Rights abuse
  8. Genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity
  9. "UN court acquits top Kosovo rebel". BBC News. 30 November 2005. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
  10. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 25 September 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2011.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

Sources

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