Military unit From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Vullnetari ("the volunteer") were a volunteer militia of Albanians from Kosovo set up in 1941 by Italian forces after the successful invasion of Yugoslavia. They served as an auxiliary force for civilian control[3] and protection of villages.[4]
Some of the militia served as frontier guards under both Italian and German rule.[4] The Vulnetari fought only in their own local areas, so they fought against both Partisans and Chetniks, "against whom they showed themselves skilled and determined fighters".[4] The Vulnetari of the region of Đakovica went to Plav and Gusinje to support the Italian counteroffensive during the Uprising in Montenegro.[5]
Independently, Vulnetari units often attacked ethnic Serbs and carried out raids against civilian targets.[1][6] According to Serbian scholars, the Vulnetari burned down hundreds of Serbian and Montenegrin villages, killed many people, and carried out plundering campaigns in Kosovo, and neighboring regions.[7]
At the end of World War II, the militia was used to protect retreating German forces. After German forces retreated through Kosovo, members of the Vulnetari militia dispersed in their villages.[8]
The name of this unit is derived from Albanian word Vullnetarë (volunteers).They were also known by the demonym "Kosovars".[4]
Confiscations of Albanian land and settlement of Serbian colonists throughout the interwar period drove some Kosovar Albanians during the Second World War to collaborate with the Axis powers who promised a Greater Albania.[9] During the Invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941 Albanian volunteers put themselves at disposal of general Eberhard, the commander of German 60th Infantry division.[10] They felt that anything would be better than the chauvinism, corruption, administrative hegemonism and exploitation they had experienced under the Serbian authorities during interwar period.[11] The Vulnetari were mostly middle-aged Albanian peasants who lived at their homes and did not wear uniforms but only a black-red band around their arms.[12] They started to undertake actions of revenge, burning Serbian settlements and expelling interwar Serbian and Montenegrin colonists into Serbia proper.[13][14][15]
Modern-day region of Kosovo in 1941
According to Smilja Avramov, in June 1941 massacres of the Serbian population in Kosovo and Metohija took on an organized character as the Vulnetari were established.[16]
The commander of the Vulnetari from Rugova was Riz Umeri.[17] Other commanders included Sali Barjaktari, Zhuk Haxhia and Sali Beba.[18] Ram Alija, from Istok, commanded Vulnetari forces that burned Serbian villages and murdered people in Ibarski Kolašin and Metohija.[19] During one attack, the forces of Bislim Bajgora, helped by Vulnetari from Drenica led by Idriz Rexha, burned 22 villages and murdered 150 Serbs.[20]
In mid-July 1941, communication was lost between the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia (CK KPJ) and the neighbouring party organizations in Montenegro and Serbia; the regional committee of the KPJ for Kosovo and Metohija tried to reestablish communication on several occasions and began to move new fighters from their region into Montenegro and Serbia.[21] In two attempts to reach Montenegro and reestablish communication with their Communist organization, more than 20 communists from Metohija were killed by the Vulnetari.[21]
Thousands of Vulnetari and gendarmes commanded by Bislim Bajgora and Šaban Poluža attacked Ibarski Kolašin on 30 September 1941.[22] This region was attacked by Vulnetari from Drenica and Methohija Podgor, and their brutal attacks on the villages of Ibarski Kolašin lasted until 10 October 1941.[23] This attack on Ibarski Kolašin was so violent that the Germans referred to it as the "bloody wave".[24]
On 15 October 1941, Chetniks from Suva Planina attacked Vulnetari forces and initially inflicted heavy casualties on them, forcing them to retreat across the Ceranje River but the Vulnetari mamanged to defeat Chetniks later on. The Chetniks entered Ceranje and burned Albanian houses. On the evening of 15 October, strong Vulnetari forces came from Šalja and forced the Chetniks to retreat during the night. On 16 October, the Chetniks again attacked the Vulnetari militia and forced them to retreat across the Ceranje River. After the battles on 14 and 15 October, Chetniks were forced to retreat and all the Serbian houses between Slatina and Lešak were burned.[25]
On 17 October 1941, the village of Dobruša, near Peć, was attacked by Vulnetari forces consisting of militiamen from Istok, Drenica and Đakovica. The attack was organized by Dževat Begoli, the governor of Istok county. Defenders of the village managed to hold on for three days and left the village together with its population. Houses in Dobruša were then plundered and burned down.[22]
In the period between November and December 1941 groups of Vulnetari forces commanded by Shaban Polluzha were involved in the defence of Novi Pazar from the combined Chetnik-Yugoslav Partisan forces.[26] With the attackers successfully repelled, the mayor of Novi Pazar Aćif Hadžiahmetović, then made the decision to attack Chetnik controlled Raška using the forces he gathered. On 16 November at 10 a.m. Muslim and Albanian forces attacked Raška. They quickly advanced toward the town. The situation for the defenders became very difficult, so Vojislav Lukačević, the person of the biggest confidence of Mihailović, personally engaged in the defence of the town.[27]
On 30 January 1943, the Vulnetari militia captured the village of Grbole and terrorized the residents. At the end of autumn, they expelled the villagers, plundered their houses, and burned them down.[16][28][29][30] Homesteads of the Serb population were routinely sacked by the Vulnetari.[6]
Avdilj Dura, from the Kačanik region, became the commander of 5,000 Vulnetari after the Bulgarian capitulation in September 1944.[32]
According to Serbian sources, it is estimated that the Vulnetari and other paramilitaries murdered up to 10,000 Serbs and Montenegrins in Kosovo.[33][34]
Around Struga there were two companies of 800 Vulnetari commanded by Bekir aga and Tefik Vlasi. One company of 400 Vulnetari in Rostuša was led by Ali Maliči. The commander of the Kičevo Vulnetari was Mefail, while the commander of the Gostivar Vulnetari was Xhem Hasa.[37][35]
Sali Rama, Žuk Adžija, and several outlaws under their command were arrested and sentenced to prison after World War II.[38] Avdilj Dura surrendered in January 1945 together with about 100 outlaws under his command.[39] Bislim Bajgora was killed in 1947.[clarification needed][40]
In 2010, the Macedonian Albanians political party New Democracy proposed for a monument of Xhem Hasa to be built in Gostivar. A monument of Hasa has already been built in his birthplace, village Simnica, in 2006.[41]
T. Bataković, Dušan (2007). Kosovo and Metohija: living in the enclave. Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Institute for Balkan Studies. p.55. ISBN9788671790529. Retrieved 21 August 2012. In this new satellite Fascist-type state, the Italian Government set up an Albanian voluntary militia numbering 5,000 men — Vulnetari — to help the Italian forces maintain order as well as to independently conduct surprise attacks on the Serb population.
Radovi, Томови 8-9. Sveučilište u Zagrebu. Institut za hrvatsku povijest. 1976. p.207. Retrieved 21 August 2012. Sa ovim snagama sarađivale su kvislinške jedinice »Vulnetara«(oko 6000 ljudi).
Dérens, Jean-Arnault (2006). Kosovo, année zéro. Paris-Méditerranée. p.66. ISBN9782842722487. Retrieved 21 August 2012. Une administration albano-italienne fasciste s'installa au Kosovo, tandis que la milice albanaise des Vulnetari, servait d'auxiliaire aux forces italiennes pour maintenir l'ordre.
Vickers, Miranda (1998). Between Serb and Albanian: a history of Kosovo. Hurst & Co. p.134. ISBN9781850652786. Retrieved 21 August 2012. the activities of numerous Albanian nationalist movements, and life consequently became increasingly difficult for Kosovo's Serb population whose homesteads were routinely sacked by the Vulnetari.
Вулнетари су на Косову и Метохији, али и у суседним крајевима, спалили стотине српских и црногорских села, убили мноштво људи и извршили безброј пљачки.
Borozan, Đorđe. "Albanci u Jugoslaviji u Drugome svjetskom ratu"(PDF) (in Serbian). Zagreb: Centar za politološka istraživanja. p.367. Archived from the original(PDF) on 25 December 2013. Retrieved 3 September 2012. Prvaci Druge prizrenske lige, predvođeni Daferom Devom, povukli su se sa njemačkim snagama, a vulnetarske formacije pritajeno su se sklonile u svoja matična sela.
Borozan, Đorđe (1995), Velika Albanija: poreklo - ideje - praksa[Greater Albania: origin - ideas - practice] (in Serbian), Belgrade: Vojnoizdavački insitut Vojske, p.305, OCLC48419390, "Вулнетари", Албански добровољци који су се ставили на располагање команданту њемачке 60. пјешадијске дивизије генералу Еберхарду за вријеме априлског рата, имали су улогу помоћне албанске полиције задужене за подстицање исељавања српског и црногорског становништва са Косова и Метохије
Borozan, Đorđe (1995), Velika Albanija: poreklo - ideje - praksa[Greater Albania: origin - ideas - practice] (in Serbian), Belgrade: Vojnoizdavački insitut Vojske, pp.305, 482, OCLC48419390, углавном из косовско-метохијских села, средовјечни сељаци, носили су на руци траку црно-црвене боје... Нијесу били униформисани, живјели су код својих кућа и слободно носили оружје.
Ramón, Juan Corona (2015). "Kosovo: Estado actual de una balcanización permanente". In Weber, Algora; Dolores, María (eds.). Minorías y fronteras en el mediterráneo ampliado. Un desafío a la seguridad internacional del siglo XXI. Madrid: Dykinson. p.262.
Avramov, Smilja (1995). Genocide in Yugoslavia. BIGZ. p.186. ISBN9788613007982. Retrieved 21 August 2012. In the month of June the massacres took on a more organized character when Shqiptar volunteer companies (the so-called Vulnetari) were formed and armed. A company headed by Ram Alia and another group under Tsola Barjaktar [...]
Пошто je од средине јула 1941. остао без веза са ЦК КПЈ и суседним партијским организацијама у Црној Гори и Србији, Обласни комитет КПЈ за Косово и Метохију je у неколико махова покушавао да успостави везе и да почне организовано да пребацује нове борце из области у тамошње партизанске јединице. У два покушаја да се пробију до Дрне Горе и успоставе везу са тамошњом организацијом КПЈ погинуло je више од двадесет комуниста из Метохије. Њих су побили „вулнетари" (добровољци) Албанци „чувајући" границу „Велике Албаније" од „Црногораца-партизана и комуниста".
Više hiljada vulnetara i žandarma pod komandom Bislima Bajgore i Šabana Poluže napali su Ibarski Kolašin 30. septembra. ... Vulnetari su u Ibarskom Kolašinu 1941. ubili 150 ljudi. ... Dobruša kod Peći napadnuta je od jakih vulnetarskih snaga. Stanovnici su napustili selo i spasavali se odlaskom u Vitomiricu i Peć. Posle odlaska Nemaca i preuzimanja okupacione vlasti od strane Italijana, većina meštana, osim onih koji su otišli u Crnu Goru, vratila se natrag. Načelnik istočkog sreza Dževat Begoli organizovao je novi napad 17. oktobra u kome su, pored vulnetara iz istočkog sreza, učestvovali i vulnetari iz pećkog, dreničkog i đakovičkog sreza. Branioci su izdržali dva dana, a kada im je nestalo municije osigurali su povlačenje staraca, žena i dece, nakon čega su i oni napustili selo, koje je opljačkano i spaljeno.
Antonijević, Nenad (5 March 2005). "Albanski zločini nad Srbima na Kosovu i Metohiji u Drugom svetskom ratu Nacistički genocid nad Srbima" (in Serbian). Pravoslavlje.rs. Archived from the original on 25 December 2013. Retrieved 30 August 2012. Ibarski Kolašin, kompaktna srpska teritorija u dolini Ibra, od Ribarića do Kosovske Mitrovice, bio je stalno na udaru albanskog terora. Ovu teritoriju napadali su vulnetari iz Drenice i Metohijskog Podgora. Jedan od masovnih napada dogodio se 30. septembra 1941. Najžešći udari na sela Ibarskog Kolašina trajali su do 10. oktobra 1941. Tada je spaljeno više od 20 srpskih sela.
Bošković, Branko N. (1968). Narodnooskobodilačka borba u Ibarskom basenu (in Serbian). Zajednica naučnih ustanova Kosova i Metohije. p.101. Retrieved 30 August 2012. Четници суходолског одреда извршили су наредног дана контранапад наносећи вулнетарима приличне губитке, протерују их преко Церањске реке и у Церањи пале Арбанашке куће. Предвече 15. октобра 1941 из Шаље преко Копаоника пристижу јаче вулнетарске снаге због чега су се четници у току ноћи морали повући. У току 16 септембра 1941 четници су поново извршили контранапад и успели да протерају вулнетаре преко Церањске реке. У борбама 14-15 октобра 1941 спрске породице су на простору Слатина-Лешак остале без крова над главом и без средстава за живот а вулнетарске снаге су при повлачењу имале прилично жртава.
Pavlović, Blagoje (1996), Albanizacija Kosova i Metohije[Albanisation of Kosovo and Metohija] (in Serbian), Pančevo: Evropsko slovo, p.47, OCLC76831409, Пошто су вулнетари, 30. Јануара 1943. године, поробили Грболе, терор над житељима овог села, којег нису поштеђени ни стари ни болесни, жене ни деца, спроводили су све до краја јесени 1943. године. Онда су их протерали из села, а куће им опљачкали и спалили
Jevtić, Atanasije. "Od Kosova do Jadovna" (in Serbian). Svetosavlje.org. Retrieved 30 August 2012. Један од њих Душан Ђајић, земљорадник, убијен је тако да му је једна нога свезана за високу пречагу лестава док су му другу ногу вукли на ниже, све док је нису ишчупали из бедара. Његова жена Мара гледала је мучење.
Bataković, Dušan T. (1998). Kosovo: la spirale de la haine: les faits, les acteurs, l'histoire (in French). L'AGE D'HOMME. p.43. ISBN9782825111321. Retrieved 21 August 2012. On estime que la milice volontaire albanaise Vulnetari (env. 5 000 hommes), assistee per diverses formations paramilitaires, assassina en quatre ans quelque 10 000 Serbs.
Antonijević, Nenad. Arhivska građa o ljudskim gubicima na Kosovu i Metohiji u Drugome svetskom ratu. p.479. Najrealnije procene, na osnovu dostupnih arhivskih izvora, ukazuju da je u toku Drugoga svetskog rata na Kosovu i Metohiji život izgubilo oko 10 hiljada Crnogoraca i Srba, među kojima su većina stradali kao žrtve terora i zločina albanskih kvislinga.
У самом почетку њиховог организовања било је, на пример, у Дебру 1.200-1.500 вулнетара сврстаних у 5-6 чета ... У гостиварском крају Џемо стално јача. За врло кратко време мобилисао je у Пологу 3.000 - 4.000 људи под оружјем, док je у кичевском крају имао око 2.000 наоружаних балиста и вулнетара под вођством Мефаила;
Малковски, Ѓорѓи (2002). "Балистичката организација во Македонија во Втората светска војна (1941-1944 година)" (in Macedonian). makedonskosonce.com. Archived from the original on 26 February 2012. Retrieved 8 September 2012. вулнетари или доброволна војска. Тие биле организирани на целата територија на Западна Македонија. Во Дебар нивниот број изнесувал од 1.200 до 1.500 лица распоредени во пет до шест чети.
Малковски, Ѓорѓи (2002). "Балистичката организација во Македонија во Втората светска војна (1941-1944 година)" (in Macedonian). makedonskosonce.com. Archived from the original on 26 February 2012. Retrieved 8 September 2012. Во струшкиот крај бројот на вулнетарите изнесувал од 700 до 800 души, кои биле поделени во две чети. Првата чета броела 500 души, а командант бил мајорот Бекир ага. Втората чета се состоела од 300 лица чиј командант бил мајорот Тефик Власи. Во Ростуше дејствувала една чета од 400 души со која командувал Али Маличи. Во Кичево со вулнетарите командувал Мефаил, а во Гостивар Џемо Хаса.
Ličina, Đorđe (1977). Tragom plave lisice (in Serbian). Centar za informacije i publicitet. p.95. Retrieved 4 September 2012. Podsjetit ćemo na jednu od najkrvavijih: u borbi s balistima Bislima Bajgore, u prosincu 1946. na Popovoj česmi, kod Vučitrna, poginulo je 18 pripadnika službe sigurnosti i KNOJA-a. Vođa terorističke bande Bislim Bajgora, likvidiran je slijedeće godine.
"И фашистот Џемо влезе во ред за биста". Нова Македонија (in Macedonian). 2010. Archived from the original on 23 December 2014. Retrieved 8 September 2012. Партијата на Имер Селмани бара да му се изгради споменик на Џемо Балистот во Гостивар, кој во Втората светска војна беше крвник на македонскиот народ и соработник со италијанскиот и германскиот фашистички окупатор...Споменик на Џемо Хаса веќе има во неговото родно село Симница.
Sources
Antonijević, Nenad (2003). "Stradanje srpskog i crnogorskog civilnog stanovništva na Kosovu i Metohiji 1941. godine". Dijalog Povjesničara-istoričara. 8. Zadar: Friedrich Nauman Stiftung: 355–369.