Peshkëpi incident
Encyclopedia
The Peshkëpi incident was the killing of 2 Albanian army officers on 10 April, 1992 at 02:40 AM. Eight men, later identified as members of the Northern Epirus Liberation Front, a terrorist paramilitary organization, were involved in an attack on an Albanian army barracks in Peshkëpi, Dropull
, Albania
in April 1994. Two Albanian border soldiers were killed while sleeping; three were wounded.
organization, accused the Albanian Government of violating the rights of the ethnic Greek minority in Albania and berated Greece for not doing enough to support the minority. MAVI also called for an "armed struggle" against Albania. A 1984 bombing of the Albanian Embassy in Athens was claimed in its name.
On 10 April 1994 several gunmen crossed into Albania from Greece and stormed a border guard facility in the village of Peshkëpi, killing two soldiers and seriously wounding three others before returning across the Greek border..
(MAVI) claimed responsibility both the next day and some months later. Stohos, a Greek nationalist weekly newspaper, regularly reported in a proud way about the incident. On the other hand, the Greek government flatly denied any responsibility in the event and, in the first couple of days, even excluded the possibility that any Greeks could have been involved in the incident. The Albanian government responded by arresting five member of the organization Omonoia
.
In response to this arrest the Greek government expelled a high number (that goes from 70,000 to 125,000) of Albanians emigrants from Greece.
Dropull
Dropull is a predominantly Greek-inhabited region in Gjirokastër District, in southern Albania. The region stretches from south of the city of Gjirokastër to the Greek-Albanian border, along the Drinos river. The region's villages are part of the Greek "minority zone" recognized by the Albanian...
, Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
in April 1994. Two Albanian border soldiers were killed while sleeping; three were wounded.
Background
From the mid 1980s a far-right terrorist organization named "Northern Epirus Liberation Front" (MAVI), after the Northern Epirote World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
organization, accused the Albanian Government of violating the rights of the ethnic Greek minority in Albania and berated Greece for not doing enough to support the minority. MAVI also called for an "armed struggle" against Albania. A 1984 bombing of the Albanian Embassy in Athens was claimed in its name.
On 10 April 1994 several gunmen crossed into Albania from Greece and stormed a border guard facility in the village of Peshkëpi, killing two soldiers and seriously wounding three others before returning across the Greek border..
Aftermath
Albanian authorities alleged that the perpetrators were dressed in Greek military uniforms and were speaking Greek. In Greece, the Northern Epirus Liberation FrontNorthern Epirus Liberation Front
The Northern Epirus Liberation Front also called Northern Epirote Liberation Organization , was an ethnic Greek resistance group that operated in areas of southern Albania during the Italian and German occupation of Albania...
(MAVI) claimed responsibility both the next day and some months later. Stohos, a Greek nationalist weekly newspaper, regularly reported in a proud way about the incident. On the other hand, the Greek government flatly denied any responsibility in the event and, in the first couple of days, even excluded the possibility that any Greeks could have been involved in the incident. The Albanian government responded by arresting five member of the organization Omonoia
Omonoia (organization)
Omonoia is a social, political and cultural organization in Albania that promotes minority rights for the Greek minority in the south of the country....
.
In response to this arrest the Greek government expelled a high number (that goes from 70,000 to 125,000) of Albanians emigrants from Greece.
Victims
Two Albanian soldiers were killed in there sleep, while 3 others were injured:- Arsen Gjini (soldier)
- Fatmir Shehu (kapten)
See also
- Northern Epirus Liberation FrontNorthern Epirus Liberation FrontThe Northern Epirus Liberation Front also called Northern Epirote Liberation Organization , was an ethnic Greek resistance group that operated in areas of southern Albania during the Italian and German occupation of Albania...
- Liberation Army of ChameriaLiberation Army of ChameriaLiberation Army of Chameria is a reported paramilitary formation in the northern Greek region of Epirus. The organisation is reportedly linked to the Kosovo Liberation Army and the National Liberation Army, both ethnic Albanian paramilitary organisations in Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia...
- Greek ResistanceGreek ResistanceThe Greek Resistance is the blanket term for a number of armed and unarmed groups from across the political spectrum that resisted the Axis Occupation of Greece in the period 1941–1944, during World War II.-Origins:...
Sources
- http://www.greekhelsinki.gr/pdf/ghm-greeks-albanians.PDF
- http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=ebd_1236102823
- http://b-info.com/places/Bulgaria/news/94-05/may13.gr