The Krusha massacres were among the largest single-day killings of Albanian civilians during the Kosovo War, with 243 men killed or missing.
Key Facts
- Date
- 25 March 1999
- Men killed or missing (total)
- 243 persons
- Killed in Velika Kruša
- ~100 men and male teenagers over 13
- HRW reported killed
- more than 98 men
- Conviction year
- 2020 (Darko Tasić)
- Days after NATO bombing began
- 1 day
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
On 24 March 1999, NATO began its bombing campaign against Yugoslavia. The following day, Serbian special police reserve units entered Albanian-inhabited villages near Orahovac in what witnesses described as coordinated operations targeting the male population amid the broader Kosovo War conflict.
On the afternoon of 25 March 1999, Serbian special police units entered Velika Kruša and Krushë e Vogël, separated men and boys from women and children, and killed approximately 243 Albanian men in total. Bodies were subsequently relocated and buried in mass graves away from the sites of the killings.
The massacre drew international attention, with British journalist John Sweeney witnessing the disposal of bodies in the Drini river and later serving as a key trial witness. In 2020, Darko Tasić was convicted as one of the perpetrators, marking a step toward judicial accountability for the crimes.