Albanian Terrorism in Kumanovo

[Soldier of Macedon]

Could the simplest explanation be the real one? That a group of naive terrorists from UCK thought it would be a good time to wage war........

If so, they couldn't have chosen a better time while tensions between the two main Macedonian political blocs are heightened.

Even if that's true I still don't see an obvious motive other then to destabilize Macedonia.

Destabilizing Macedonia is just one phase of their overall goal.

To make them members of parliament in a future coalition government.

That would be funny had it not happened in the past.

I saw one of their reports on the news this morning (probably the same one you saw). It was absolute bullshit and was subtly justifying the actions of the terrorists. I'm not sure whether the Australian channels have broadcasted what happened, but the papers seemed to have covered it online.

I was watching SBS less than an hour ago and they had a brief segment on what was happening. Macedonia was referred to as such and it seemed pretty objective (albeit short).

"Zarko Kuzmanovski (1981), Nenad Serafimovski (1987), Saso Samoilovski (1982) are the names of the policemen who were killed today, while the names of the two other officers who were killed will be revealed after their families have been notified.

May they rest in peace. I heard on Macedonian radio that all three of them were from Tetovo.

[Bill77]

On every social media sites I see nothing but praise and safe wishes for Police, coming from citizens of Macedonia.

Yet only two days ago, these same citizens were spitting, cursing, and pelting them with rocks.

Go figure.



Anyway.......
Morning front pages of leading Serbian dailies interpreting Kumanovo events as beginning of a war for GreaterAlbania. If this would be true, it's going to be suicide for the Albanians as Serbia will get involved this time and the Albanians will not get as much help as they did from the west the last time around.

[George S.]

I have heard the news that Macedonians are involved wit\h aiding and fighting alongside trhe terrorists.The terrorists are fully armed with snipers etc.

[Volokin]

Kumanovo Incident: Identity of Other Victims Revealed
May 10, 2015, Sunday @ 11:38 in Politics » DOMESTIC

Kumanovo Incident: Identity of Other Victims Revealed Isamedin Osmani, Boban Ivanovic and Goran Ilievski were killed late last night in the clashes between the Macedonian police and the terrorist group in Kumanovo.

Isamedin Osmani, Boban Ivanovic and Goran Ilievski were killed late last night in the clashes between the Macedonian police and the terrorist group in Kumanovo.

Two of them succumbed to the injuries yesterday and the other died after the surgery at the Emergency Center in Skopje in early morning hours.

According to the Macedonian Interior Ministry, Zarko Kuzmanovski, Saso Samoilovski, and Nenad Serafimovski were also killed in the operation.

Gordana Jankulovska, the Minister of Internal Affairs last night informed that 5 policemen were killed yesterday, over 30 injured, and 20 members of the armed group surrendered to the police.
She further added that there was no information about civilian casualties and the exact number of killed members of the armed group was still unknown. She said the operation will continue until complete neutralization of all terrorists.

R.I.P

Respect to all the defenders of Macedonia whom have lost their lives.

I'd also like to point out the respect I have for a loyal Macedonian citizen of Albanian descent to lay his life down for the country of his birth.

[stoja11]

Where are the dead terrorists? Why don't we see their arms and uniforms? I heard they only have 2 men injured.

[Volokin]

Macedonia standoff with armed group continues for 2nd day
Several gunmen remain after about 20 surrender
The Associated Press Posted: May 10, 2015 6:00 AM ET Last Updated: May 10, 2015 6:01 AM ET
Macedonian special units members take cover as the fighting resumes for second day between police and an armed group in Kumanovo.

Fighting between police forces and members of an armed group has continued for a second day in the northern Macedonian town of Kumanovo.

Five police officers were killed and over 30 injured in an exchange of fire with the armed group in the town on Saturday.

Early Sunday, ambulances in Kumanovo were seen carrying more wounded policemen.

Interior minister Gordana Jankulovska told reporters late Saturday that over 20 members of the armed group had surrendered, but that others refused to give up arms and were holed up in houses in Diva Naselba, a neighbourhood in western Kumanovo.

There are reports the armed group was made up of about 70 members.

Jankulovska said the "terrorist group," which had entered Macedonia from an unspecified neighbouring country, planned plan to "use the current political situation to perform attacks on state institutions."

She said some of the attackers had been killed, without specifying the number. She was not able immediately able to confirm whether there were any civilian casualties.
Macedonia Shootings

People leave the scene of a police standoff against members of an armed group in the northern Macedonian town of Kumanovo. (Boris Grdanoski/Associated Press)

Saturday's clashes come as Macedonia is grappling with its deepest political crisis since its independence from former Yugoslavia in 1991. The government and the opposition have accused each other of planning to destabilize the country to take or preserve power, and some analysts fear leaders on both sides are ready to provoke ethnic clashes as leverage.

Kumanovo is an ethnically mixed town located about 40 kilometres northeast of the capital Skopje, near the border with Kosovo and Serbia. The region was the center of hostilities between ethnic Albanian rebels and government forces during the ethnic conflict in 2001.

Ethnic Albanians, who make up a quarter of Macedonia's 2 million people, took up arms in 2001 demanding more rights. The conflict ended after six months with a western-brokered peace deal that granted more rights to the minority group.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/macedonia-standoff-with-armed-group-continues-for-2nd-day-1.3068328

Fighting continues for a second day. Article from an hour ago.

Kumanovo Clashes: Macedonian Prime Minister Visits Injured Policemen
May 10, 2015, Sunday @ 12:41 in Politics » DOMESTIC
Kumanovo Clashes: Macedonian Prime Minister Visits Injured Policemen Macedonian Prime Minister visits victims

The Macedonian Prime Minister has visited the policemen that were injured in the clashes that erupted last night between Macedonian police and terrorist group in Kumanovo.

According to official information, at least 6 persons have been killed and over 30 injured in the shooting.

http://www.independent.mk/articles/17316/Kumanovo+Clashes+Macedonian+Prime+Minister+Visits+Injured+Policemen

[Constellation]

Look how Euronews frames it.

Macedonian police have launched an operation in the ethnically mixed northern town of Kumanovo against armed and uniformed men believed to be ethnic Albanians.

Ethnically mixed. This is important.

At least 15 people were wounded, according to media reports from Macedonia and Bulgaria.

Note that Bulgaria is thrown in.

An ethnic Albanian party is part of the ruling coalition, but extremists within the ethnic minority claim they do not enjoy the same rights as Slav Macedonians.

And there it is. There is the climax.

There is a subtle interwoven theme in the article that Macedonia is ethnically mixed, that Macedonia is really Bulgaria, and that the identity of the people is Slav Macedonians.

You would think with such an important news story the Western press would actually report the news, rather than it color it with propaganda.

[Volokin]

9 May 2015 | 18:24 | FOCUS News Agency
Bulgaria has no plan about events in Macedonia which is evident from the latest CCNS: Prof. Bozhidar Dimitrov
Sofia. “Bulgaria has no plan about the events in Macedonia and this is evident from the latest Consultative Council for National Security (CCNS),” historian and director of the National Museum of History Professor Bozhidar Dimitrov, said in an interview for FOCUS News Agency commenting on the latest events in Macedonia’s Kumanovo.
“I am worried, because I am at 100% sure that we have no plan about what is happening in Macedonia. My fears come not from the very events in Macedonia, but whether there is an action plan depending on the situation development. I am afraid there isn’t.
From my personal experience I know that many of those in power and the opposition [in Bulgaria] do not know the real Macedonia and that some 30-40 km from Sofia, live around 1.5 million Bulgarians by origin, and more than 100,000 of them are Bulgarian citizens. They [Bulgarian institutions] do not know that our country is responsible to them and have to protect and preserve, but also to fight for the rights of those who are called Macedonians by force. The other problem of Macedonia is that it is not a regular state and nation. It has no historical past; this is a country invented in 1944. Macedonia is the last Museum of the Communist International in the European territory. We need to know what to do in any situation," Professor Dimitrov said.

http://www.focus-fen.net/news/2015/05/09/371696/bulgaria-has-no-plan-about-events-in-macedonia-which-is-evident-from-the-latest-ccns-prof-bozhidar-dimitrov.html

[Soldier of Macedon]

http://www.focus-fen.net/news/2015/0...-dimitrov.html

Pretty stupid message and useless article. Let's stick to news that is actually relevant.

[Volokin]

Irrelevant message yes, but my point was Mr. Dimitrov calling Bulgaria the protector of Macedonia in times of conflict.

[DedoAleko]

More update from focus-fen.net

Terrorists in Kumanovo planned to attack 5 police stations

Skopje. The armed group, which entered into exchange of fire with the police in the Macedonian town of Kumanovo, planned to attack five police stations at one and the same time, Macedonian online news edition Net Press reported.
According to the media, the terrorists targeted police stations in Kumanovo, Zajas, Kicevo, Gostivar and Tetovo.
Situation in Kumanovo has not calmed down yet. The intensity of the gunfire is decreasing.
According to unofficial information, the police managed to kill at least 15 terrorist.
Interior Minister Gordana Jankulovska, on the other hand, yesterday announced that 20 terrorists from the group had been arrested.

izvor: http://www.focus-fen.net/news/2015/0...-stations.html

Death toll in Kumanovo reaches 8

Skopje. Number of the police officers killed in the shooting in the Macedonian town of Kumanovo reached eight, Macedonian Telma TV reported.
Five police officers died yesterday, one police officer was killed this morning, while two of the injured police officers died at the hospital.
While cleaning the terrain today, authorities found the body of a dead policeman, who probably died in an explosion.

izvor: http://www.focus-fen.net/news/2015/0...reaches-8.html

[Volokin]

KUMANOVO/SKOPJE – Following the clashes between the police and an armed group in Kumanovo, northern Macedonia, that lasted all day Saturday, the situation is relatively calm, but still tense due to sporadic gunfire that could be heard during the night and in the morning.

Helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles are flying over the Kumanovo area, and witnesses say that thick, black smoke is seen gushing out from this direction, the news agency MIA reported.

Macedonian Interior Minister Gordana Jankulovska said on Saturday evening that five police officers were killed and 30 persons injured in Saturday’s police action, adding that the terrorist group has laid down the weapons.

She said that there are victims both among civilians and terrorists, but did not what to speculate on numbers.

The terrorist attack was aimed at the government institutions, she reiterated.

According to the latest information, 8 police officers were killed in action, Serbian daily “Novosti” reported.

According to GazetaExpress.com, on Sunday was announced that a protest will take place in Tirana in support of ethnic Albanians in Macedonia, following the ongoing conflict in Kumanovo.

A call for protest was distributed today on social media, for a gathering in front of Piramida in Tirana, starting at 18:30, and a march towards the Macedonian Embassy in Tirana.

Albanian media quoted a statement of the so-called “National Liberation Army” (NLA), which claimed responsibility for the attacks, saying that the army and police carried out “terror against civilians” and announced even fiercer attacks on the security forces of Macedonia.

“We will continue to attack the police and the army without mercy. We will fight to the end to unite territories with Albanian population. Today we are stronger, and tomorrow we will be even stronger. We are everywhere.”

The National Liberation Army, also known as the Macedonian UÇK, is a militant organization closely associated with the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA).
“We are ready to destroy Macedonia and the whole Balkans”

“The Guard of Republic Ilirida” (GRI) on Sunday informed the public, and, as they say, “all Albanian territories and the international community”, that today all Albanian groups and military units of NLA started to act as “on body” in establishing the “Republic of Ilirida”.

The group said in a statement that “at the same time, they require from international factors to immediately force Macedonian military and police forces to cease using military helicopters against NLA, and against our land forces, which are lightly armed.”

“Otherwise we will be forced to take proportional measures that are in complete contradiction with international conventions of war,” the group threatens.

“The international factor is responsible for non-implementation of the Ohrid Agreement in 2001,” the statement reads.

“In addition to continuing struggle and reorganization of NLA and GRI, which is imposed as the only option for achieving the Republic of Ilirida, if the leadership of Macedonia, as a false creation, continues to be repressive with its state apparatus, we are ready to destroy, if necessary, not only Macedonia but also the whole Balkans, wherever Albanians live, because the international factor leaves us no other choice,” reads the statement signed by “Commander Hamdi Ndrecaj Panter”.

http://inserbia.info/today/2015/05/sporadic-gunfire-in-kumanovo-8-police-officers-kia-protests-in-tirana/

Not surprisingly, but rather expected, Albanians begin protesting, proving themselves as the masters of self-victimization once again.

If the "NLA" and GRI are stressing that the Ohrid Agreement was not implemented, does that mean these groups are pro-agreement? I was assuming that this new "NLA" was anti Ohrid Agreement & DUI due to the coalition with DPMNE.

More with the view of the ANA, Albanian National Army, whom oppose the agreement, but haven't been active since 2010 (?). Now I'm not sure whether the ANA were ever a proper militant force, but anyway.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albanian_National_Army

[Soldier of Macedon]

According to GazetaExpress.com, on Sunday was announced that a protest will take place in Tirana in support of ethnic Albanians in Macedonia, following the ongoing conflict in Kumanovo.

They should instead be protesting in support of the Macedonian soldier of ethnic Albanian descent that was killed by the terrorists.

[Volokin]

10 May 2015 | 16:10 | FOCUS News Agency
Skopje. Sami Ukshini known as Commander Sokoli [Falcon], Beg Rizai, Dem Shehu, and Muhammad Yusuf, known as Commander Malisheva are the four terrorists who on Saturday evening surrendered to Macedonian police, after fighting all day, Macedonian online edition A1on announced. This is what Albanian Koha edition argues, referring to its sources from the Interior Ministry. According to the edition Commander Malisheva was injured in the shootings. The newspaper claims that the four are leaders of the group, but there were others who had surrendered. The only one who did not want to surrender was Mirsad Ndrecai, known as Commander NATO. All were involved in the conflict in Macedonia in 2001 and acted in the Lipkovo region.

http://www.focus-fen.net/news/2015/05/10/371808/a1on-four-nla-commanders-surrendered-to-the-police.html

Lokalno, Macedonia: Terrorist group in Kumanovo busted, the bodies of 14 attackers found
10 May 2015 | 16:15 | FOCUS News Agency
Skopje. Macedonia Interior Ministry spokesman Ivo Kotevski said at a press conference in Skopje that the police action in Kumanovo has ended, and the terrorist group was busted, Macedonian Lokalno online edition announced.
According to Kotevski the police found 14 bodies of terrorists. Currently their identities are being established. Among the bodies was not being identified NATO commander who is the leader of the group.

http://www.focus-fen.net/news/2015/05/10/371809/lokalno-macedonia-terrorist-group-in-kumanovo-busted-the-bodies-of-14-attackers-found.html

Looks like this could be end of the current firefight. Reports are new.

[Gocka]

Get the fuck out of this forum you terrorist sympathizer mother fucker. Not 2 but every last one will go to hell soon.

Where are the dead terrorists? Why don't we see their arms and uniforms? I heard they only have 2 men injured.