Ljuboten Incident
Part of 2001 insurgency in Macedonia
Date Clashes: 10 August 2001 Massacre: 12 August 2001 Location Ljuboten, Macedonia
Belligerents
National Liberation Army (initial attack denied by Ali Ahmeti)	Macedonia
Commanders and leaders
Xhavit Hasani Nazmi Sulejmani Muzafer Agushi [ sq]  † [1] [2] [3]	Ljube Boškoski Johan Tarčulovski [4]
Units involved
113th Brigade "Ismet Jashari"	Army Reservists
Strength
25 insurgents [5]	Unknown
Casualties and losses
1 killed [6] [7]	8 killed [8] 8 wounded [9]
10 ethnic Albanian civilians killed in later police action 150 ethnic Albanians injured [10] Hundreds of ethnic Albanians arrested [11] 14 ethnic Albanian homes burned [11]

The Ljuboten clashes, ( Macedonian: Љуботенските судири, Albanian: Përplasjet e Lubotenit), also referred to as the Ljubotenski Bacila massacre, ^[12] ( Macedonian: Масакрот на Љуботенски Бачила), happened on 10 August, 2001, when a Macedonian Army truck convoy composed of reservists ran over a landmine near the village of Ljuboten, killing eight men. ^[13] Immediately after the attack fighting between Albanian rebels and Macedonian forces erupted. ^{[14] [15]} The Macedonian government officially blamed the NLA for the attack. ^[16] The leader of the NLA, Ali Ahmeti, did not confirm NLA involvement in planting the mines, suggested the devices might have been placed by government forces to prevent rebel crossings, and expressed his regret at the incident. ^[17]

Aftermath

Two days after the attack, Macedonian forces surrounded Ljuboten and killed ten Albanian civilians. ^[16] The Macedonian Army surrounded Ljuboten and shelled the village with helicopters and heavy artillery, during the shelling 2 Albanian civilians, one elderly man and a 6-year-old girl were killed. ^[19] Following the shelling Macedonian reservists entered the village and started to carry out the killing of six individuals, shooting them either in the head or the back, including a 6-year-old boy. ^{[19] [20] [21]} Later one man was stabbed to death in the presence of his paralyzed father. ^[19] The remains of a 35-year-old man were also found near the village, by his relatives, 6 days after the incident. ^[19] On 12th June 2001, a small faction of NLA fighters led by Muzafer Agushi [ sq] deserted from the NLA to return to Ljuboten. Their primary objective was to rescue wounded civilians in the village amid the ongoing massacre. Muzafer Agushi lost his life on that very day. ^[22]

After a investigation by the Human Rights Watch, it was concluded that no NLA members were present in the village during the incident. ^{[19] [16]}

References

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