Kijevo offensive
| Kijevo offensive | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Kosovo War | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 FR Yugoslavia |
 Kosovo Liberation Army | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
 Milorad Ulemek |
unknown | ||||||||
| Units involved | |||||||||
|
Unknown | |||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
|
150 Yugoslav police officers[3] |
Unknown | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| None | None | ||||||||
The Kijevo offensive, also known as the Siege of Kijevo, was a military operation during the Kosovo War conducted by Yugoslav forces and Special Operations Units led by Milorad Ulemek.[4] The goal was to secure a connection to the highway. Various clashes occurred, and Yugoslav Troops succeeded in driving Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) out of Kijevo and the surrounding areas.[5][6][7]
KLA attack on Kijevo
The KLA attacked the village of Kijevo somewhere between 15 and 17 May 1998. This siege was important and one of the more decisive battles of the war. The village was a key access point to the highway which was 50 km from Priština, and was a stronghold for the KLA. Heavy fighting started when the KLA captured a few houses and fought the local police in the area. Fighting between Police and the KLA lasted for a long time. In early June, the Yugoslav Army was informed about the battle and joined in, conducting an offensive attack on the highway, which had been controlled by the KLA. Yugoslav forces successfully re-took the highway after more than 15 days of fighting and then called for the Special Operations Unit (JSO) as reinforcement to come and re-take Kijevo.[8] In June, U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke travelled to the region and attempted to persuade the KLA to end their siege, fearing a wider war would break out.[9]
Yugoslav Offensive on Kijevo
The JSO arrived with helicopters and machine guns, and began shooting and raiding KLA positions around the village.[10][11] By this time, civilians had fled the village. In the ensuring firefight, the KLA lost a significant amount of area that could have been useful for their guerilla tactics.[12][13] The militants withdrew from the area as the JSO cleared the village and reinstated Yugoslav control over it.[8]
References
- ^ "Yugoslav Forces crush the KLA attempt to take Kijevo". 3 July 1998.
- ^ "OPERACIJE KOJE SE KRIJU OD JAVNOSTI: Sve tajne akcije CRVENIH BERETKI". republika.rs.
- ^ Deprez, Philippe (30 June 1998). "Les forces serbes relancent l'offensive contre les guérilleros albanais". Le Temps.
- ^ "JSO-Helihopterski desant KiM na selo Kijevo 1998.god". YouTube. February 2018.
- ^ "Serb forces said to lift siege of Kijevo". reliefweb.int. 3 July 1998.
- ^ "Serbian Forces Break Separatists' Siege of Town in Kosovo". Los Angeles Times. 4 July 1998.
- ^ "Les forces serbes relancent l'offensive contre les guérilleros albanais - le Temps". 30 June 1998.
- ^ a b Brown, Adam (4 July 1998). "Serbs regain control of key Kosovo site". eu.southcoasttoday.com.
- ^ Brown, Adam (4 July 1998). "Serbs regain control of key Kosovo site". Associated Press.
- ^ "Serbian tanks crush siege by guerrillas from Kosovo". 3 July 1998.
- ^ "JSO-Helihopterski desant KiM na selo Kijevo 1998.god". YouTube. February 2018.
- ^ "Kosovo: Serb Forces Advance on Ethnic Albanian Rebels Update (2)". YouTube. 16 November 2016.
- ^ "Conflict with Kosovo separatist supporters Kijevo, May 17 1998". YouTube. 10 December 2015.