The remains of at least one person missing since the Kosovo War have been discovered during an exhumation in the village of Brekoc, near Gjakova, local authorities confirmed on July 30, 2025.
The Sector for Investigation of Persons Missing During the War, in coordination with the Institute of Forensic Medicine and the Government Commission for Missing Persons, carried out a court-ordered exhumation at a suspected burial site.
Discovery Confirms Suspicions
During the excavation, human skeletal remains were found and are believed to belong to at least one individual who disappeared during the 1998–1999 conflict in Kosovo.
The remains have been removed from the site and transported to the Institute of Forensic Medicine (IML) for further forensic examination and DNA testing to establish identity.
Ongoing Efforts To Locate The Missing
In a statement, Kosovo Police said:
“On July 30, 2025, the Sector for Investigation of Persons Missing During the War, in coordination with the Institute of Forensic Medicine and the Government Commission for Missing Persons, executed a court order for exhumation in the Brekoc cemetery, Gjakova. During the excavation at the suspected site, human skeletal remains were found, which are believed to belong to at least one person missing during the Kosovo War. The remains were removed from the scene and sent to the IML for medico-legal examination.”
A Painful Chapter Still Open
More than 1,600 people are still unaccounted for from the Kosovo War, more than two decades after the conflict ended. Families continue to seek answers about the fate of their loved ones, and periodic exhumations remain crucial for justice and closure.
Authorities have called on anyone with information about potential burial sites to come forward to assist ongoing efforts to locate and identify those still missing.
The recovery in Brekoc, Gjakova, underlines the enduring mission to bring closure to families of the missing and to help Kosovo’s post-war society come to terms with its unresolved past.
