The Ćuška massacre ( sq, Masakra e Qyshkut, sr, Масакр у Ћушкој, translit=Masakr u Ćuškoj) was the killing of 41
Kosovo Albanian civilians, all men aged 19 to 69, by Serbian security forces, the Yugoslav Army and paramilitaries on 14 May 1999 during the
Kosovo War
The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that started 28 February 1998 and lasted until 11 June 1999. It was fought by the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (i.e. Serbia and Montenegro), which controlled Kosovo before the war ...
.
On 13 March 2010, the Serbian war crimes prosecutor announced that nine men had been arrested for their role in the massacre and stated that a total of 26 men were under investigation for murder and theft at Ćuška.
Background
Ćuška
Ćuška ( sr-cyr, Ћушка) or Qyshk (in Albanian) is a village near Peja, in western Kosovo. It is inhabited predominantly by ethnic Albanians.
History
In May 1999, during the Kosovo War, the Jackals paramilitary unit massacred civilians in ...
is a village close to the city of
Peja
Peja ( Indefinite Albanian form: ''Pejë'' ) or Peć ( sr-Cyrl, Пећ ) is the fourth largest city of Kosovo and seat of Peja Municipality and Peja District. It is situated in the region of Rugova on the eastern section of the Accursed Mount ...
. The village had 200 houses and about 2,000 residents, predominantly
Albanians
The Albanians (; sq, Shqiptarët ) are an ethnic group and nation native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, culture, history and language. They primarily live in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Se ...
.
In the early morning of May 14, 1999, Serbian security forces descended on the small village of Ćuška.
[ Once there the women and children were separated from the men, private property was systematically stolen, and identification papers were destroyed.][ The forces then divided the men into three groups of about ten and taken into three separate houses, where they were gunned down with automatic weapons.][ Each of the houses were then set on fire.][ In each of the three houses, one man survived.][
The motivation for the ]massacre
A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...
at Ćuška remains unclear. Agim Çeku, a Kosovo Liberation Army
The Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA; , UÇK) was an ethnic Albanian separatist militia that sought the separation of Kosovo, the vast majority of which is inhabited by Albanians, from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) and Serbia during the ...
(KLA) commander, was a village native and his father who was residing there was killed in the massacre; however many from the Serb forces stated that his death was not the primary purpose of the attack.[
]
Court proceedings
On 13 March 2010 Serbian War crime prosecution office arrested nine members of paramilitary of the "Jackals" paramilitary group.[ Serbian War crime prosecution office has for now, launched investigation against 26 individuals for murder and theft at Cuska.][
On 20 January 2012 a district court in Stockholm, Sweden sentenced Milić Martinović, a 34-year-old former Serb policeman, to lifetime imprisonment for his role in the massacre.]
See also
* List of massacres in Yugoslavia
References
External links
Massacre at Cuska
(American Public Media)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cuska massacre
Massacres in 1999
Mass shootings in Kosovo
Arson in Europe
Serbian war crimes in the Kosovo War
Law enforcement in Serbia
1999 in Kosovo
Massacres of men
Massacres in the Kosovo War
Anti-Albanian sentiment
May 1999 events in Europe
Mass shootings in Serbia
Violence against men in Europe