Battle of Matejče

The Battle of Matejče (Macedonian: Битката кај Матејче Albanian: Beteja e Mateçit) was a military confrontation between the NLA and the Macedonian Army in the village of Matejče during the 2001 insurgency in Macedonia. The Albanian rebels succeeded in capturing the village on 5 June 2001.[1][2]

Battle of Matejče
Part of the 2001 insurgency in Macedonia
Date24 May–5 June 2001
Location
Matejče, Republic of Macedonia
Result

NLA victory[1][2]

Belligerents
National Liberation Army  Macedonia
Commanders and leaders
Beqir Sadiku
Commander Shpati[7]
Xhemail Rexhepi
Nazmi Sulejmani
Lefter Koxhaj		 Army of the Republic of Macedonia Col Blagoja Markovski
Units involved
113th Brigade "Ismet Jashari"
Skanderbeg special unit		 Army of the Republic of Macedonia Macedonian Army
Macedonian Police
"Tigar" Special Police Unit[8]
Strength
unknown 50 officers (start of the Battle)
Army of the Republic of Macedonia unknown
Army of the Republic of Macedonia 3 T-55 tanks[9]
Army of the Republic of Macedonia 20 armoured vehicles[9]
Army of the Republic of Macedonia Mil Mi-24's[10]
Casualties and losses
9 killed[11] Army of the Republic of Macedonia 9 killed[12][13]
Army of the Republic of Macedonia 3 wounded[13][14]
Army of the Republic of Macedonia 1 Tank destroyed[15]
North Macedonia 8 Macedonian Serbs were arrested and abused by NLA [16]
Matejče Monastery was destroyed by the NLA[17]
Matejče Mosque destroyed by Macedonian shelling[18]

Battle
Matejče Mosque destroyed during the Battle

Initial NLA attack

On 24 May 2001, in the aftermath of heavy fighting between insurgents and Macedonian forces in the nearby villages of Vaksince and Slupčane, dozens of NLA insurgents entered Matejče and attacked the local police station.[19]

Macedonian response

On 26 May, Macedonian Forces launched a large scale assault on the NLA positions. The Macedonians succeeded in retaking much of Matejče and pushing the NLA to the very outskirts of the village.[20][21]

During the assault one Macedonian soldier was wounded by NLA mortar fire.[14]

NLA counter-attack and main combat phase

On May 27, after the successful Macedonian advance, the NLA began a counter-attack, engaging the Macedonian forces with heavy mortar and sniper fire, eventually capturing a part of the village and surrounding the local police station.[10][9][22]

On the same day a Macedonian Army convoy of around 20 APC's, three T-55 tanks and a bus with policemen were send to the village.[9] Later that day the Macedonian Army also used Mil Mi-24 helicopter gunships, artillery and tanks to target suspected guerrilla positions in Matejče.[10]

Fighting resumed the next day, with the NLA firing five 120-millimeter mortar shells.[23]

During the fighting on 30 May, a Macedonian truck ran over an NLA planted mine, killing one soldier and wounding other two.[13]

From 1 to 3 June, Macedonian forces again shelled Matejče and again tried to regain control of the area.[24][25][26] But on June 5 the NLA captured the village and Macedonian forces were forced to withdraw.[3][1][2][27] On 6 June the NLA confirmed to have regained complete control over Matejče and Vaksince.[5]

Aftermath

During the battle nine NLA insurgents were killed, most of them while trying to regain lost ground during the NLA counter-attack.[11][28] One Macedonian T-55 Tank was destroyed.[15][29] According to Macedonian sources, the tank was destroyed by friendly fire.[15] The village mosque was completely destroyed during the fighting.[18] On 11 June the Matejče Monastery as well as homes of ethnic Macedonian civilians were destroyed by the Albanian rebels.[30][31]

According to Human Rights Watch, the NLA physically abused eight Serb civilians in the village.[32] Macedonian propaganda later claimed the NLA were holding civilians as human shields, this claim was proven false when local civilians admitted they were staying in the combat zone out of fear of falling into the hands of the Macedonian police.[33]

References
  1. "MACEDONIA:THE CONFLICT AND THE MEDIA" (PDF). Macedonian Institute for Media. Fighting around Matejce lasted from May 28 until June 5. The first sign that the battle against the UCK was not going well came when the Macedonian forces were finally forced to retreat.
  2. Krzak, Andrzej (2014-07-26). "Asymmetry of the Albanian‑Macedonian Military Conflict in 2001: Military characteristics of the fight in the regions of Tetovo , Kumanovo , Aračinovo and Vaksince". Politeja. 11 (4 (30)): 295–316. doi:10.12797/Politeja.11.2014.30.23. ISSN 2391-6737. The fighting of Albanians ended up with a success in the region of Kumanovo. The Albanian rebels, concerning the inaction of the government forces, took control of the area from the Matejche (Matejce) village to the Lipkovo Lake. As a result, their posi-tions allowed to observe the region of the capital of Macedonia – Skopje.
  3. Phillips, John (2004-01-01). Macedonia: Warlords and Rebels in the Balkans. Yale University Press. p. 113. ISBN 978-0-300-10268-0. In late May, government forces registered their first success with the recapture of Vaksince, which was visited by Ljube Boskovski, the Interior Minister. Government forces were supposed to resume their attack on the villages of Slupcane, Lipkovo and Matejce, but the offensive stalled when a special forces unit mutinied and had to be withdrawn from the front line.
  4. "Macedonia Frontline | AP Archive". www.aparchive.com. Retrieved 2023-02-03. But the Macedonians, who according to the Albanians, only had three tanks in Matejce, lost their part of the village after a fierce battle.
  5. "CNN - NATO slams Macedonia rebel attacks - June 7, 2001". CNN. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  6. "Macedonia: Army Suspends Operations In Kumanovo-Lipkovo". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  7. "Macedonian Guns Helicopters Hit Rebel Village". Islamweb. Retrieved 2023-01-22.
  8. Phillips, John (2004-01-01). Macedonia: Warlords and Rebels in the Balkans. Yale University Press. p. 113. ISBN 978-0-300-10268-0.
  9. "Rebels in clashes with Macedonian troops". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  10. Holley, David (2001-05-27). "Macedonian Official Vows to Restore Order to Villages". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  11. "Dëshmorët" (PDF).
  12. "Macedonia Frontline | AP Archive". www.aparchive.com. Retrieved 2023-02-03. Disabled Macedonian army tank believed to contain eight dead soldiers, destroyed in battle to retake village, which Macedonians lost
  13. "071031ED". www.icty.org. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  14. "CNN - Macedonian forces take villages - May 26, 2001". CNN. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  15. Petrovski, Pande. "Testimonials-2001.pdf" (PDF). Retrieved 4 September 2022. They sent the one tank along the way from the south to the north of the village and to the mosque. About 30 to 40 metres behind the tank they filled bags with sand and made shelters, in other words they built a check point. Then, because supposedly there were terrorists in the mosque, they started to act. In this action, a police officer hit the tank with a weapon "zolia" - certainly not intentionally. The driver of the tank was wounded and the tank was set ablaze in front of the mosque
  16. "Macedonia: Albanian Rebel Abuses of Serb Civilians". Human Rights Watch. 2001-06-06. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  17. Strahl, Tobias (2018). Kultur, Erbe, Konflikt : Kulturgutzerstörung in Kroatien, Bosnien-Herzegovina und Kosovo 1991-2004. Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. ISBN 978-3-412-50249-2. OCLC 1080084985.
  18. Budapest, Nick Thorpe in (2001-05-29). "Rebels withstand Skopje's onslaught". The Guardian. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  19. "MACEDONIA: ALBANIAN REBEL ABUSES OF SERB CIVILIANS (Human Rights Watch, 7 June 2001) - balcani@peacelink.it". Liste PeaceLink (in Italian). Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  20. "Albanians rebels do a deal". News24. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  21. "Macedonia blasts rebel village". 2001-05-28. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  22. Krzak, Andrzej (2014-07-26). "Asymmetry of the Albanian‑Macedonian Military Conflict in 2001: Military characteristics of the fight in the regions of Tetovo , Kumanovo , Aračinovo and Vaksince". Politeja. 11 (4 (30)): 295–316. doi:10.12797/Politeja.11.2014.30.23. ISSN 2391-6737. Brigades backed with reinforcements from Kosovo came to counter--attack, leading offensive operations in the Slupchane (Slupcane) -Orizari -Otlja aiming to regain control of the village Matejche (Matejce).
  23. Holley, David (2001-05-29). "Fear Grows That Macedonia Strife May Hit Capital". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  24. Reuter (2001-06-02). "Macedonian Troops Again Trying to Retake Rebel-Held Village". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  25. "Macedonian Troops Try Again to Retake Village". Tehran Times. 2001-06-02. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  26. "CNN - Macedonia troops battle for village - June 2, 2001". CNN. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  27. "Macedonia Frontline | AP Archive". www.aparchive.com. Retrieved 2023-02-03. But the Macedonians, who according to the Albanians, only had three tanks in Matejce, lost their part of the village after a fierce battle.
  28. Archives, L. A. Times (2001-06-03). "Rebels, Troops Clash Anew in Northern Village". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  29. Petrovski, Pande. "СВЕДОШТВА 2001" (PDF). Retrieved 4 September 2022. При нападот, ноќта еден тенк се заглави во Кривеничка Река, онеспособен и оставен во реката. Покасно терористите го извлекоа и пласираа како заробиле тенк од АРМ [During the attack, at night one tank got stuck in Krivenicka Reka, it was disabled and left in the river. The terrorists later they pulled out and marketed as having captured an ARM tank]
  30. AndreasGregorDesign, Munich. "Peace Counts". www.peace-counts.de (in German). Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  31. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. "Refworld | U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2001 - Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of". Refworld. Retrieved 2023-02-02.
  32. "Macedonia: Albanian Rebel Abuses of Serb Civilians". Human Rights Watch. 6 June 2001. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  33. RATHFELDER, ERICH (2001-05-30). "Erst getrennt und dann geschlagen". Die Tageszeitung: taz (in German). p. 10. ISSN 0931-9085. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
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