Drenica massacres

Drenica massacres
Municipalities of Glogovac and Srbica in Drenica region in central Kosovo.
Location	Drenica, Kosovo, FR Yugoslavia
Coordinates	42°24′51″N 20°32′42″E / 42.4143°N 20.545°E / 42.4143; 20.545
Date	February - March 1998 March – June 1999
Target	Kosovo Albanians
Attack type	Mass Killings
Deaths	83 civilians dead, including at least 24 women and children in the villages of Ćirez, Likoshan, and Prekaz
Perpetrators	FR Yugoslavia security forces

The Drenica massacres (Serbian: Масакри у Дреници, Masakri u Drenici, Albanian: Masakra në Drenicë) were a series of killings of Kosovo Albanian civilians committed by Serbian special police forces in the Drenica region of central Kosovo.

According to Human Rights Watch, abuses in the Drenica region during the Kosovo War 1998–1999 "were so widespread that a comprehensive description is beyond the scope of this report". Key atrocities took place in the period of February – March 1998 in the Ćirez (Qirez), Likoshane, and Prekaz and during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, from March to June 1999 in the villages of Izbica, Rezala, Poklek and Staro Ćikatovo.

Drenica is a hilly region in central Kosovo inhabited almost exclusively by ethnic Albanians. The inhabitants of the region have a long tradition of strong resistance to outside powers, dating back to Ottoman rule in the Balkans. The villages of the Drenica region are the birthplace of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), which began armed operations in Drenica in 1996. By 1997, Kosovo Albanians had begun to refer to Drenica as "liberated territory" because of the KLA's presence.

In January 1998, Serbian special police began operations that raided villages in Drenica linked to the KLA. Between February 28 and March 5, police launched multiple military-style attacks on the villages of Ćirez, Likoshan and Prekaz, using armored vehicles and helicopters. Although the KLA engaged in combat during these attacks, government forces fired at women, children, and other noncombatants.