Today marks 27 years since the massacre in the villages of Poklek i Vjetër and Çikatovë e Vjetër, in the municipality of Drenas, where Serbian forces killed and burned the bodies of 77 unarmed Albanian civilians, ranging from six-month-old infants to 75-year-old elderly people.
Among the victims were children, young men and women, and elderly people who were killed, massacred, and some burned. Even after more than two decades, none of the perpetrators or those who ordered the crimes have been brought to justice.
In Poklek i Vjetër alone, 53 unarmed Albanian civilians were massacred, killed, and then burned, including infants and elderly individuals.
According to numerous witnesses, the massacre unfolded as follows: On April 17, at around 5:00 in the morning, the Muqolli, Caraku, and Elshani families set out to leave Poklek i Vjetër toward Drenas, where the population of surrounding villages had gathered and was being held. About 1.5 km from the village, a Pinzgauer vehicle with Serbian police arrived and ordered them to return to their homes. They complied after being threatened, with warning shots fired nearby.
After returning home, two policemen with black bands on their heads arrived. They killed the family dog in the yard, then called Sinan outside and spoke to him in Serbian. Afterwards, the policemen went to the schoolyard where other police forces were stationed. Sinan returned and told the families that he had been asked whether there were “terrorists” present.
The families remained in fear and tension throughout the day until around 17:30, when one of the policemen entered the room where all the families—children, women, and elderly—had gathered and threw a grenade, which did not explode. He then threw another grenade, which exploded in the lap of Miradije Rifat Muqolli (55). Immediately afterward, he fired seven rounds of an automatic weapon into the room. The perpetrator then entered the room and kicked the bodies to check if anyone had survived.
Amid the chaos, the wounded Elheme managed to jump out of the window and escape. Two and a half hours later, Lumnija fled with her four-year-old daughter, leaving behind Emina and her two-year-old son Fatos, both lightly injured. Later, Emina’s scarf was found in the house well.
Three hours after the massacre, police returned and burned the room along with the bodies. The following night, family members returned and found the remains of the victims. When they came back again a day later, even the bones had disappeared, as the entire house had been burned down.
List of victims of the Poklek i Vjetër massacre (April 17, 1999)
Sinan Rexhep Muqolli (52)
Elheme Rifat Muqolli (50)
Emine Sinan Muqolli (22)
Elife Sinan Muqolli (18)
Sherife Sinan Muqolli (17)
Hafije Sinan Muqolli (10)
Feride Selman Muqolli (33)
Shehide Fadil Muqolli (13)
Naser Fadil Muqolli (12)
Ylber Fadil Muqolli (10)
Egzon Fadil Muqolli (4)
Hyle Selman Muqolli (22)
Florentina Qamil Muqolli (3)
Lirie Qamil Muqolli (6 months old)
Mehreme Muqolli (58)
Bahrije Halil Muqolli (24)
Naime Halil Muqolli (22)
Hidajete Nebih Muqolli (33)
Menduhie Liman Muqolli (11)
Mirsad Liman Muqolli
Mergim Liman Muqolli (5)
Bahtije Halil Caraku (34)
Besart Ejup Caraku (13)
Hasan Ejup Caraku (12)
Unnamed relative of Bahtije Caraku (45)
Miradije Rifat Muqolli (55)
Zarife Rrahman Muqolli (23)
Arife Rrahman Muqolli (20)
Florije Salih Muqolli (23)
Eronita Xhavit Muqolli (4)
Fatos Xhavit Muqolli (1.5)
Shemsije Muqolli (42)
Vezire Ilmi Muqolli (20)
Fatmire Ilmi Muqolli (17)
Rexhep Ilmi Muqolli (12)
Agron Ilmi Muqolli (10)
Albulena Ilmi Muqolli (5)
Nexhmije Ramadan Muqolli (25)
Hasime Ramadan Muqolli (37)
Avdullah Fehmi Muqolli (12)
Shehrije Xhemail Muqolli (27)
Vahide Mehdi Muqolli (4)
Two sons of Mehdiu (10 months and 2 years old)
Ymer Elshani (55)
Nafije Elshani (50)
Shukrije Elshani (37) and four sons (ages up to 22)
Kimete Fadil Muqolli (20)
Lindita Skender Hoxha (25)
Missing persons:
Halim Kluna (75)
Mother of Ymer Elshani (75)
