Ethnic Cleansing in Kosovo

The following types of war crimes or violations of international humanitarian law have been reported in Kosovo since 7 April:

Forcible Displacement of Ethnic Albanian Civilians

On 6 April, the Serb forces began to impel ethnic Albanians to leave the border area on 6 April, the day Belgrade proclaimed a unilateral cease-fire. Refugees claimed that security forces on 7 April laid mines at Morina--the main border crossing between Kosovo and Albania-to prevent refugees from crossing. A few refugees who were able to cross reported that the road leading to the post was empty of people for several miles into Kosovo.

Widespread Burning of Homes

The burning of residential areas in large towns and cities of Kosovo and many villages continued. Over 50 additional villages to have been burned since 4 April. To date, we estimate that some 200 residential areas have been burned. Most Serb homes and stores have remained intact.

Detentions

We have no information on the status of those Internally displaced persons (IDPs) forced to leave the border area. The following locations in Kosovo have been reported as the sites of mass detention facilities:

• Glogovac: The Ferro-nickel factory in this town is reportedly being used as a detention center for a large number of Kosovar Albanians, and reportedly was used by the Serbs as a detention and execution site for ethnic Albanian men and boys during security operations last year.
• Pec: Serb forces are reportedly using the soccer stadium as a detention center.
• Srbica: The press and refugees report that as many as 20,000 ethnic Albanians-including women and children--were force-marched from the town of Cirez to Srbica as human shields for Serb tanks before being detained in a munitions factory.
• Vucitrn: An unknown number of ethnic Albanians were reportedly herded into a school here.

Summary Executions

Refugees from Ljubenica reported on 8 April that Serb forces murdered at least 100 ethnic Albanians from this village in western Kosovo. Refugees at a camp in Albania on 8 April said that Serb forces massacred some 50 ethnic Albanians including women, children, and the elderly in Orohavac.

The following incidents have been reported in Kosovo since 8 April: Istok. One thousand refugees from this town arrived at the border with Macedonia on 8 April. Some refugees said that an unknown number of people had died en route and others were turned around by Serb police near Raska and Novi Pazar.

Kotlina. Ethnic Albanians on 8 April discovered a mass grave suspected of containing the bodies of some 26 persons, according to refugee reports. The victims allegedly were murdered in mid-March by a Serb paramilitary group. The paramilitaries reportedly entered the town and separated the ethnic Albanian men from their families. The refugees suspect that the site has been mined.

Orahovac. A group of Romas (gypsies) who arrived at the Albanian border on 8 April claimed they were expelled because Serb authorities said they were originally from Albania and not "true" Kosovars. The group reported seeing many vehicles along the road, some of them smashed and burned.

Pristina. A Kosovar Albanian claimed that on 1 April Serb police forced his family at gunpoint to leave Pristina. They were staying with friends after being evicted from Klina. Another refugee family from a Pristina suburb claimed to have seen a burned body and another that was decapitated as they left.

Prizren. A Kosovar Albanian who traveled to Prizren for a funeral on 2 April reportedly witnessed ethnic Albanian civilians being forcibly evicted from their homes. The families were given two hours to vacate their property. The houses were then either set ablaze or used to shelter Serb forces. The eyewitness reported rumors that some 20,000 Kosovar Albanians were deported to Serbia proper to be used as human shields at weapons factories.

Vrsevac. Unconfirmed reports claimed that Serb police used IDPs as human shields on 7 April.