DIMČEVSKI: TO REMEMBER AND STUDY BATTLE ON KOŠARE

BELGRADE, APRIL 9 /SRNA/ - Dragutin Dimčevski, the wartime commander of the Košare checkpoint, said that the battle of Košare disrupted the plan of the NATO aggressors and said that because of that, as well as the courage and patriotism of its participants, it deserves to be remembered, learned and studied.

Dimčevski emphasized that at the beginning of the battle, which started on April 9, 1999, the forces of the then Yugoslav Army, that is, the 53rd Border Battalion, numbered around 130 members who stood up to a much stronger enemy whose backbone consisted of members of the terrorist KLA, mercenaries, volunteers, but also the regular army of Albania, as well as NATO forces in the air.

"My unit managed to stop the enemy at the very border, inflict losses on them and enable units from deep to occupy positions and consolidate their ranks," Dimčevski recalled.

He said that it is very difficult to single out some of the 67 days that the fighting lasted on the border itself, because they were exposed to artillery and infantry attacks every day, but he singled out April 11, the Orthodox Easter, as a particularly difficult moment for everyone on the watch.

"That's when I had the biggest losses. In the Košare area, I had eight dead, a commander and seven soldiers. That day was black for us, even though it was the biggest Christian holiday," Dimčevski stated.

Among the events that were deeply etched in his memory, he singled out the death of Slavko Krunić on May 4.

"His body was only managed to be retrieved by the family several years later. It was only through international organizations and the Red Cross that on October 11, 2003, based on DNA, his remains were retrieved. I was at the funeral in the village of Kamenica near Gornji Milanovac," Dimčevski told "Kosovo Online".

Dimčevski, a retired lieutenant colonel, pointed out that in 26 years he never had a dilemma whether to come to Košare again.

"My great desire is to return, not to fight, but as a tourist. My wish is to visit Kosovo and Metohija completely, and above all Metohija, where I served," Dimčevski said.

On this day, 26 years ago, the most famous and one of the most difficult battles in recent Serbian history began at Košare, in which 108 soldiers died defending the state border of the SR Yugoslavia against Albanian forces and NATO.