Račak ( sq, Reçak; sr-Cyrl, Рачак) is a village in the Shtime municipality of Kosovo. It was the site of the January 1999

Račak massacre The Račak massacre ( sq, Masakra e Reçakut) or Račak operation ( sr, Акција Рачак/Akcija Račak) was the massacre of 45 Kosovo Albanians that took place in the village of Račak ( sq, Reçak) in central Kosovo in January 1999. The ...

, in which 45 villagers were killed by Serbian forces.

Geography

Račak is located about half an kilometer southwest of the town of Shtime. The village lies on the Crnoljeva-mountain range. This mountain range divides the Kosovo field and

Metohija Metohija ( sr-Cyrl, Метохија, ) or Dukagjin ( sq, Rrafshi i Dukagjinit, ) is a large basin and the name of the region covering the southwestern part of Kosovo. The region covers 35% (3,891 km2) of Kosovo's total area. According ...

History

The village was first mentioned in a

chrysobull A golden bull or chrysobull was a decree issued by Byzantine Emperors and later by monarchs in Europe during the Middle Ages and Renaissance, most notably by the Holy Roman Emperors. The term was originally coined for the golden seal (a ''bull ...

by the Serbian Emperor Stefan Dušan in 1343. Noted in an Ottoman

defter A ''defter'' (plural: ''defterler'') was a type of tax register and land cadastre in the Ottoman Empire. Description The information collected could vary, but ''tahrir defterleri'' typically included details of villages, dwellings, household ...

of 1487, the village was home to a monastery, consecrated in the name of

Saints Cosmas and Damian Cosmas and Damian ( ar, قُزما ودميان, translit=Qozma wa Demyaan; grc-gre, Κοσμᾶς καὶ Δαμιανός, translit=Kosmás kai Damianós; la, Cosmas et Damianus; AD) were two Arab physicians in the town Cyrrhus, and were r ...

Climate

Population

As of the census of 2011, Račak had a population of 1,638 of whom 1629 were

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 ...

, one was

Bosniak The Bosniaks ( bs, Bošnjaci, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry, cu ...

and eight did not answer. 1631 were Muslims and seven did not answer. of whom 1629 are

, one is

and eight did not answer.

Račak massacre

Prior to the summer of 1998, Račak had a population of around 2,000 people. Most of its population was displaced by fighting between the Army of Serbia and Montenegro, Yugoslav Army and soldiers from the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) in July 1998. By January 1999, about 350 people had returned to the village, according to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). On 16 January 1999, OSCE monitors found the bodies of 45 people in and around the village in what became widely known as the Racak massacre. Following the incident, for which the international community blamed the Serbian military, the remaining population fled and did not return until the end of the Kosovo War in June 1999. A memorial exists to the victims of the massacre at Reçak. Kosovo annually holds a ceremony to honour the victims of the massacre.

References and links

Complete analysis of the incident at Račak on Jan. 15, 1999, Yugoslavia Info

* "Massacre haunts returning Kosovo villagers", ''The Atlanta Constitution'', June 15, 1999 * "Kosovo village struggles in limbo a year later", Associated Press, March 19, 2000

External links

Location
{{DEFAULTSORT:Racak Villages in Štimlje