Ismet Jashari (16 April 1967 – 25 August 1998) also known as Commander Kumanova (), was an

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

soldier of the

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) who was killed on 25 August 1998 during the fighting with Serbian forces in Klečke,

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

. The Ismet Jashari-Kumanova Brigade of the KLA was named in his memory. After 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 ...

, he was declared

Hero of Kosovo Hero of Kosovo ( sq, Urdhri Hero i Kosovës) is an official Orders, decorations, and medals of Kosovo, order in Kosovo. It is awarded by the President of Kosovo. Award "Hero of Kosovo" is a state decoration given to historical figures of Kosov ...

. Jashari had left Switzerland where he lived to join the

(KLA) to fight against Serbian military and police forces under the command of former Serbian President

Slobodan Milosevic Slobodan ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан) is a Serbo-Croatian masculine given name which means "free" (''sloboda'' / meaning "freedom, liberty") used among other South Slavs as well. It was coined by Serbian liberal politician Vladimir Jovanović w ...

Early life

Ismet was born on April 16, 1967 in the village of Orizari in the Municipality of

Lipkovo Lipkovo ( mk, , sq, Likovë) is a village in North Macedonia. It is the seat of Lipkovo Municipality. History Lipkovo was a central strategic village during the 2001 armed conflict between the Albanian National Liberation Army and the Maced ...

. From his father's side, the Jashari family migrated to Macedonia in the early 1910s from

Vranje Vranje ( sr-Cyrl, Врање, ) is a city in Southern Serbia and the administrative center of the Pčinja District. The municipality of Vranje has a population of 83,524 and its urban area has 60,485 inhabitants. Vranje is the economical, polit ...

in south-Serbia when there were a significant minority of ethnic Albanians living there. His mother came from the Emini family of

near

Kumanovo Kumanovo ( mk, Куманово ; also known by other #Etymology, alternative names) is a city in North Macedonia and the seat of Kumanovo Municipality, the List of municipalities in the Republic of Macedonia by population, largest municipali ...

in Macedonia. He completed primary school in his hometown to continue his secondary education in

, Macedonia. During the 80s and 90s Ismet Jashari was active on promoting democracy and freedom in the Communist Federation of Yugoslavia, these actions had him arrested several times and also the main factor which made him flee to Switzerland where he worked with construction. He completed primary school in his hometown to continue his secondary education in Kumanovo. Ismet Jashari has two brothers and five sisters. One of the brothers is Jemail Jashari who is an MP in the

Macedonian Parliament The Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia ( mk, Собрание на Република Северна Македонија, sq, Kuvendi i Republikës së Maqedonisë së Veriut), or the Sobranie ( mk, Собрание, "Assembly"), is t ...

today, representing the Albanian political party BDI (Bashkimi Demokratik për Integrim). The second brother is Murat Jashari who was arrested for illegal weapon trade during the Kosovo Wars by Swiss authorities.

Death

On August 25, 1998, while fighting with Serbian Forces, Ismet Jashari was killed. On August 25, 2009, Jashari was posthumously awarded the

award.

Legacy

In 2001, the 113th NLA Brigade was established under his name during the

2001 Insurgency in Macedonia The 2001 insurgency in Macedonia was an armed conflict which began when the ethnic Albanian National Liberation Army (NLA) militant group, formed from veterans of the Kosovo War and Insurgency in the Preševo Valley, attacked Macedonian secu ...

. In 2011 a monument dedicated to him was inaugurated in

Lipkovo Municipality Lipkovo ( mk, , sq, Likovë) is a municipality in the north part of North Macedonia. ''Lipkovo'' is also the name of the village where the municipal seat is found. Lipkovo Municipality is part of the Northeastern Statistical Region. Geography ...

, Republic of Macedonia.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jashari, Ismet 20th-century Albanian military personnel 1998 deaths Albanians in North Macedonia Albanian nationalists People from Lipkovo Municipality Kosovo Liberation Army soldiers 1967 births