Llapushnik prison camp
Encyclopedia
Lapušnik or Llapushnik prison camp was a detention camp (also referred to as prison and Lapušnik concentration camp) near the city of Glogovac
in central Kosovo
during the Kosovo war
, early 1998, held by the Kosovo Liberation Army
(KLA) for the intimidation, imprisonment, violence and murder of Serbs
and perceived Albanian
collaborators who refused to cooperate with or resisted the KLA by non-military means.
and Isak Musliu
unlawfully detained Serb and Albanian civilians from the municipalities of Štimlje, Glogovac
and Lipljan, for prolonged periods in the camp. On July 25 or 26, the KLA left the camp when the Serbian armed forces were advancing on Lapušnik.
) charged Fatmir Limaj
, Isak Musliu
and Haradin Bala
.
In November 2005 all defendants except Haradin Bala, were found innocent and released. Haradin Bala, a guard, was sentenced 13 years for persecutions on political, racial and religious grounds, cruel treatment, murders and rape, for his role in maintenance and enforcement of inhumane conditions in the camp.
Although exact number of prisoners and number of killed is unknown, it is known that at least 23 people were killed (9 were executed in the Berisha mountains by Haradin Bala and two other guards).
Glogovac
Glogovac is a town and municipality in the Pristina district of central Kosovo.-History:Before the Kosovo War of 1999, the Kosovo Liberation Army had a strong level of influence and controlled large areas of the municipality.-More about Glogovac:...
in central Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
during the Kosovo war
Kosovo War
The term Kosovo War or Kosovo conflict was two sequential, and at times parallel, armed conflicts in Kosovo province, then part of FR Yugoslav Republic of Serbia; from early 1998 to 1999, there was an armed conflict initiated by the ethnic Albanian "Kosovo Liberation Army" , who sought independence...
, early 1998, held by the Kosovo Liberation Army
Kosovo Liberation Army
The Kosovo Liberation Army or KLA was a Kosovar Albanian paramilitary organization which sought the separation of Kosovo from Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the 1990s....
(KLA) for the intimidation, imprisonment, violence and murder of Serbs
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
and perceived Albanian
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
collaborators who refused to cooperate with or resisted the KLA by non-military means.
History
According to the early indictments: In early 1998, KLA forces under the command of Fatmir LimajFatmir Limaj
Fatmir Limaj is a politician from Kosovo. He is a member of the Democratic Party of Kosovo and is considered to be Hashim Thaçi's right hand and close political partner...
and Isak Musliu
Isak Musliu
Isak Musliu was charged by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia with a series of beatings and murders in a Kosovo Liberation Army prison camp in a family compound in Lapušnik to deal with Serbs and suspected Albanians opposed to the KLA between May and July 1998 during...
unlawfully detained Serb and Albanian civilians from the municipalities of Štimlje, Glogovac
Glogovac
Glogovac is a town and municipality in the Pristina district of central Kosovo.-History:Before the Kosovo War of 1999, the Kosovo Liberation Army had a strong level of influence and controlled large areas of the municipality.-More about Glogovac:...
and Lipljan, for prolonged periods in the camp. On July 25 or 26, the KLA left the camp when the Serbian armed forces were advancing on Lapušnik.
Indictments
In 2003, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTYInternational Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
The International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991, more commonly referred to as the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia or ICTY, is a...
) charged Fatmir Limaj
Fatmir Limaj
Fatmir Limaj is a politician from Kosovo. He is a member of the Democratic Party of Kosovo and is considered to be Hashim Thaçi's right hand and close political partner...
, Isak Musliu
Isak Musliu
Isak Musliu was charged by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia with a series of beatings and murders in a Kosovo Liberation Army prison camp in a family compound in Lapušnik to deal with Serbs and suspected Albanians opposed to the KLA between May and July 1998 during...
and Haradin Bala
Haradin Bala
Haradin Bala is an Albanian-Kosovar commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army , found guilty of crimes against humanity and violations of the customs of war by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia...
.
In November 2005 all defendants except Haradin Bala, were found innocent and released. Haradin Bala, a guard, was sentenced 13 years for persecutions on political, racial and religious grounds, cruel treatment, murders and rape, for his role in maintenance and enforcement of inhumane conditions in the camp.
Although exact number of prisoners and number of killed is unknown, it is known that at least 23 people were killed (9 were executed in the Berisha mountains by Haradin Bala and two other guards).