Haradin Bala (10 June 1957 31 January 2018), also known as Shala, was a

Kosovo Albanian The Albanians of Kosovo ( sq, Shqiptarët e Kosovës, ), also commonly called Kosovo Albanians, Kosovar/Kosovan Albanians or Kosovars/Kosovans, constitute the largest ethnic group in Kosovo. Kosovo Albanians belong to the ethnic Albanian sub-gr ...

former commander of the Albanian militant organization

Kosovo Liberation Army The Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA; , UÇK) was an ethnic Albanian separatist militia that sought the separation of Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, ...

(KLA, or UÇK in Albanian). He was convicted of war crimes and

crimes against humanity Crimes against humanity are widespread or systemic acts committed by or on behalf of a ''de facto'' authority, usually a state, that grossly violate human rights. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity do not have to take place within the ...

against

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of ...

and moderate

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, Ser ...

by the

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to try their perpetrators. The tribunal ...

. His trial ended on 30 November 2005 and he was sentenced to 13 years imprisonment, particularly for crimes at the

Lapušnik prison camp Lapušnik or Llapushnik prison camp was a detention camp (also referred to as a prison) that was operated by the Kosovo Liberation Army, an Albanian militant organization, near the city of Glogovac in central Kosovo during the Kosovo War. It wa ...

between May and July 1998 and executing orders to kill Serb civilians in the Berisha Mountains on 25 July 1998, after the fall of Lapušnik as a result of the

Serbian Army The Serbian Army ( sr-cyr, Копнена војска Србије, Kopnena vojska Srbije, lit=Serbian Land Army) is the land-based and the largest component of the Serbian Armed Forces. History Originally established in 1830 as the Army of Pr ...

advances in

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 international recognition of Kosovo, partiall ...

. Bala died on 31 January 2018. The following day, a

minute of silence A moment of silence (also referred to as a minute's silence or a one-minute silence) is a period of silent contemplation, prayer, reflection, or meditation. Similar to flying a flag at half-mast, a moment of silence is often a gesture of ...

was held in

Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo The Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Kuvendi i Republikës së Kosovës; sr, Скупштина Републике Косово, Skupština Republike Kosovo) is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Kosovo that is directly ele ...

to mark his death. The minute of silence was proposed by the deputy Milaim Zeka of the Social Democratic Initiative. "All people in the world honour their values, their people, their heroes," Zeka remarked. "Last night, a great man passed away, a man that has made a great contribution to this country, this nation, and thanks to him, we are sitting here now in the parliament of Kosovo."

References

Notes

1957 births 2018 deaths Kosovan people convicted of crimes against humanity Kosovan people imprisoned abroad People convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia People from Drenas Kosovo Liberation Army soldiers {{Kosovo-bio-stub