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| community, the LDK, and
particularly its leader, the elected president of Kosovo,
Ibrahim Rugova, have maintained a policy advocating the
independence of Kosovo through non-violent methods. Until
recently, the majority of Kosovars appear to have
supported this stance of their leader. However, the
prevailing attitude began to change by 1997, when a group
calling themselves the Kosovo Liberation Army (UCK)
claimed responsibility for a series of attacks on Serbian
police officers and Albanians loyal to Belgrade. In
response, the police imposed even harsher measures of
restriction on the Kosovar community and arrested and
imprisoned many individuals on suspicion of being members
of the UCK. By the end of 1997, the UCK were launching
increasingly bold and well co-ordinated attacks on police
barracks and vehicles and declared themselves publicly to
be fighting for the independence of Kosovo. The crackdown on the UCK and escalation into protracted conflict came in February and March 1998, when Serbian police forces (MUP), including special units, mounted several operations within the Drenica region, between the municipalities of Srbica, Klina and Glogovac. Instead of crushing the aspirations of the UCK and their support among the civilian population, these attacks and the casualties thus inflicted served to further incense the Kosovar community and convince them of the uselessness of the non-violent approach of the LDK. More and more young men and women began to join the UCK and the majority of the population became open in its approval of the movement. In turn, large numbers of MUP infantry, as well as special forces, were sent into the province from elsewhere in Serbia, and the Yugoslav Army (VJ) was mobilised along the border with Albania. B. Method of Operation of the Serbian/FRY forces in Kosovo From the information gathered, it is clear that a priority for the Serbian/FRY forces in the summer of 1998 was to take control of the major roads which criss-cross Kosovo. Having done this, it was then possible to divide the area into segments which could be systematically "swept" in order to destroy any UCK bases or strongholds and terrorise the local Kosovar population into submission. These operations in each segment of the territory bear remarkable similarity, indicating a significant amount of co-ordination and planning. Generally, the majority of troops used in each operation were from the Ministry of Interior police of the Republic of Serbia (MUP) and were simply ordinary police infantry (often referred to as the Milicija), dressed in the dark blue camouflage combat uniforms of the police. Other, more specialised, units of the MUP were also used to augment these ordinary forces, such as Special Police Units (Posebne Jedinice Policije, "PJP"), brought in from other parts of the FRY, and smaller units of Special Anti-terrorist forces (Specijalne Antiteroristicke Jedinice, "SAJ"). Within the region, the main MUP bases (SUPs) were in Pristina, Kosovska Mitrovica, Pec, Djakovica, Prizren, Urosevac and Gnjilane, and there were also many stations and sub-stations in numerous smaller towns and villages, each with their own commanders. In addition, it is clear that elements drawn from the State security branch of the Serbian Ministry of Interior were also involved in Kosovo. These "secret" police formations are more difficult to identify and trace, due to their lack of public presence or identifiable uniforms. Nonetheless, the available information suggests two groupings – the plain-clothes |
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