The Battle of Kleçka, also known as the Battle of Dulje or the Battle of Lubocet and Grejçecit, was a clash that occurred between KLA fighters and Yugoslav forces in late August 1998 for the control of the villages of Kleçka, Duhël and their surroundings. The Albanian insurgents resisted the attacks by the Yugoslav Army, but after the death of their highest commander Ismet Jashari, their resistance fell, and Yugoslav forces retook control over Kleçka, together with Luzhnica.
Background.
Kleçka was home to fierce battles throughout the Kosovo War. Due to the war, the road direction Prizren–Suva Reka–Pristina via Dulje and Crnoljev was blocked several times, and in some cases it was difficult to move along it. In such cases, the alternative route Prizren–Štrpce–Shtime–Ferizaj-Pristina was used. The road route Peć–Decan–Đakovica was also problematic and unsafe because of traffic and clashes in the areas. KLA carried out many attacks on the Kleçka area, particularly on 23 July, when some militants attacked a unit of the Yugoslav army using mortars and automatic weapons on the Shtime–Suva Reka road. One VJ tank was hit by a rocket launcher of Albanian militants on July 25 at an altitude of 915 meters near Dulje, and the driver of the tank was wounded. After a few moments, the tank was hit twice more, and on that occasion the turret of the tank was damaged so that it could no longer be used. Then the crew members pull the tank out of the ambush. The next day, July 26, another T-55 tank was hit on the Dulje–Malisheva road in the same area. Two crew members were killed and one was seriously wounded. The police who were accompanying the tank could not help the crew because of the heavy fire from the terrorists. Then another T-55 tank arrived to help, one of its crew members ties the damaged tank with a cable and then everyone gets out. As a result, soldiers Zoran Popović, Goran Mišić and Tibor Kelemen were wounded, while captain Vladan Mikićević died. The use of T-55 tanks was very popular throughout the war.
Clashes around Kleçka.
After the arrival of KLA militants in the vicinity of Duhël, the Battle of Kleçka began on 22 August 1998. On August 23, the Yugoslav army began shelling Shtime, which inflicted a heavy blow on the KLA and forced them to take new positions. Yugoslav forces marched towards Kleçka, where the General Staff of the KLA was also located, but were met by Ismet Jashari's forces in Luzhnica, who held off the VJ from penetrating towards Kleçka for an entire day, while being heavily outnumbered, as the KLA defenders were only 170–200 compared to the 2,500–3,000 Yugoslav soldiers. On 24 August 1998, the VJ had increased their offensive by attacking Ismet Jashari's forces with large-caliber cannons and surface-to-surface missiles, ultimately succeeding in driving the KLA out of Luzhnica and capturing Kleçka. One day later on 25 August, Ismet Jashari had launched a surprise counterattack in an attempt to retrieve the bodies of the fallen soldiers. On the same day, he was posthumously awarded the Hero of Kosovo award. After several hours of close combat in Luzhnica, Ismet Jashari fell in Battle, together with 4 or 5 of his soldiers.
References.
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