Battle of Paštrik

The Battle of Paštrik or Operation Arrow was a two-week confrontation between the KLA with NATO's support against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1999, during the Kosovo War. The main objective of the KLA forces was to open a route through the river White Drin and the Mount Paštrik in order to secure the safe passage of weapons and personnel across the Yugoslav-Albanian border.

Battle of Paštrik
Part of the Kosovo War
Mount Paštrik view from Prizren
Date 26 May–10 June 1999 Location Paštrik, Kosovo, FR Yugoslavia (FR Yugoslav-Albanian border) 42°12′38″N 20°31′24″E Result Tactical Stalemate[1][2][3][4]
Belligerents
KLA Albanian Army NATO	Yugoslav Army Russian Volunteers
Commanders and leaders
Ekrem Rexha Sadik Halitjaha Tahir Sinani Wesley Clark	Nebojša Pavković Vladimir Lazarević Božidar Delić Stojan Konjikovac
Units involved
121st Brigade 82nd Airborne Division	Priština Corps Units 549th Motorized Brigade 72nd special Airborne Brigade
Strength
150 men (initial) 1,200 men (May) American B-52 and A-10	450 men (initial) 1,000 men (May)
Casualties and losses
71 killed 200 wounded[5]	87 killed 300 wounded[6][7]
Paštrik Location of Paštrik in Kosovo

KLA fighters managed to seize Mount Paštrik, its northern slopes and the village of Milaj, on the northern bank of the White Drin by the end of May.[8] In spite of heavy NATO air support, which included the use of USAF B-52 bombers, the Yugoslav Army held the line on the White Drin, where they build temporary bridges to maintain their supply lines open, supported by heavy mortars and artillery. The KLA took over the villages of Planeja, Bucare and Ljumbarda and a stretch of the border area northwest of Prizren,[9][10] but was unable to make further gains by the time of the Kumanovo Agreement on 9 June,[11] which resulted in Yugoslav troops withdrawing from Kosovo.

References

1. "Nine Myths About Kosovo" (PDF). Air Force Mag.
2. Barić, Robert (2002), "Operacija Allied Force i ograničenja zračne moći", Polemos : Časopis za interdisciplinarna istraživanja rata i mira, V (9–10): 177–214
3. Henry H. Perritt: Kosovo Liberation Army - the inside story of an insurgency, p. 199
4. Stephen T. Hosmer: The Conflict Over Kosovo: Why Milosevic Decided to Settle When He Did, p. 89
5. Johannes M. Becker, Gertrud Brücher: Der Jugoslawienkrieg, eine Zwischenbilanz: Analysen über eine Republik im raschel Wandel, p. 139.
6. Bitka na Paštriku: Siloviti napad NATO-a i terorista UČK!
7. Promocija knjige „Bitka za Paštrik – sećanja učesnika 1999“ na Sajmu knjiga
8. Western European Union (1999). Proceedings - Assembly of Western European Union: Actes Officiels - Assemblée de L'Union de L'europe Occidentale. W.E.U. p. 313.
9. "Operation Arrow, Task Force Hawk and Air Power: KLA Ground Offensive and U.S. Army Targeting and Intelligence Point to Synergy of Joint Approach" (PDF). National Security Watch. 8 June 1999.
10. Steele, Jonathan (1999-07-17). "Ghost village marks the battle that ended the war". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2020-09-20.
11. "Washingtonpost.com: NATO Gives Air Support to KLA Forces". www.washingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2020-05-14.

Bibliography

• Смиљанић, Спасоје (2009). Војска Југославије у одбрани од агресије 1999. године (I ed.). Београд: Клуб генерала и адмирала Србије. ISBN 978-86-912285-0-7.
• Steele, Jonathan (17 July 1999). "Ghost village marks the battle that ended the war". The Guardian. London.