Today marks 26 years since the heroic death of Agim Ramadani, a distinguished warrior, poet, and military strategist who played a pivotal role during the Kosovo Liberation War. Known for his courage, leadership, and intelligence, Ramadani was one of the masterminds behind the plan to break the Albanian-Kosovo border during the famous Battle of Koshare.
Born on May 3, 1963, in Zhegër, near Gjilan, Agim Ramadani completed his primary education in his hometown, secondary school in Gjilan (1980), and later graduated from the Military Academy for Transportation in Zagreb, Croatia.
Alongside his military career, Ramadani also nurtured a passion for poetry and painting. While his poems were scattered across various publications and remained mostly in manuscript form, he participated in collective and solo art exhibitions in Croatia and Switzerland, where he lived as a political emigrant. After the war began in Croatia, he abandoned the Yugoslav army, where he served as an officer, and later became an honorary member of the European Academy of Arts in 1998.
Despite having secured his life in Switzerland, Ramadani answered the call of his homeland in 1998. Leaving behind his wife and three children, he joined the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), where he emerged as one of its most respected commanders. His strategic mind and charisma earned him admiration among fellow soldiers.
Agim Ramadani was among those who devised and executed the plan to break the border between Albania and Kosovo. He was also the first to physically remove the border stone marker (pyramid) at Koshare — a symbolic and strategic act of liberation.
He fell heroically shortly after the border was breached, near a place known as Rrasa e Zogut, on the Kosovo side of the border. His legacy continues to inspire generations committed to freedom and justice.
