Lipkovo crisis
Part of the 2001 insurgency in Macedonia
Date28 March–18 June 2001
Location
Lipkovo, Macedonia
Result NLA victory
Belligerents
National Liberation Army  Macedonia
Commanders and leaders
Abedin Zimberi[1]
Nazmi Sulejmani 
Lefter Koxhaj
Avdil Jakupi 
Xhezair Shaqiri 		 Boris Trajkovski 
Ljubčo Georgievski 
Army of the Republic of Macedonia Pande Petrovski
Law enforcement in the Republic of Macedonia Ljube Boškoski 
Units involved
113th Brigade "Ismet Jashari"
Skanderbeg special unit 		 Army of the Republic of Macedonia Macedonian Army
Law enforcement in the Republic of Macedonia Macedonian Police 
"Tigar" Special Police Unit 
Casualties and losses
12 killed[2] Army of the Republic of Macedonia 13 soldiers killed[2]
Law enforcement in the Republic of Macedonia 7 policemen killed[2]
2 guards captured (later released unharmed)[3]
Albania 3 ethnic Albanian civilians killed
10,000 Albanian civilians displaced[4]

The Lipkovo crisis (Macedonian:Липковска криза, Albanian: Kriza e Likovës) was a crisis involving Macedonian security forces and Albanian insurgents from the National Liberation Army (NLA).[5][6][7] During the crisis, the NLA captured the Lipkovo dam, which caused a 12-day-long water crisis for the neighboring town of Kumanova.[5][8] On 18 June 2001, the NLA agreed to let the International Red Cross and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) restart the water supply systems.[9] Macedonian military operations were halted to allow inspectors to access and repair the pumps.[7]

Crisis

Fighting around Lipkovo began on March 28, 2001, with loud explosions that could be heard from the vicinity of the village.[10] The conflict centered primarily around the strategically important reservoir in the area.[5] On May 3, 2001, the NLA infiltrated the village of Lipkovo as well as neighboring villages, triggering a Macedonian bombardment of the villages.[11][12] The offensive was later halted after NATO and EU officials condemned the bombardment, citing concerns that the NLA was using civilians as human shields.[13][14] At least three ethnic Albanian citizens were killed.[15] Nevertheless, heavy fighting escalated when the NLA launched an attack on Macedonian forces defending the Lipkovo Dam, resulting in the NLA gaining control of the dam. This NLA takeover of the reservoir which supplied water to over 100,000 inhabitants of Kumanovo, prompted an immediate Macedonian response.[5] On June 11, an offensive was launched with the aim of retaking the dam. However, Macedonian forces announced later that same day that they had ceased all operations in the Lipkovo region to allow international officials to inspect the water pumps.[16] On June 18th, after a period of five days marked by negotiations and discussions, the NLA militants permitted a convoy led by OSCE representatives, which included expert teams from a water supply company, to enter the village. The potential disaster that posed a threat to over 100,000 Kumanovo citizens who had been without water supply for 12 days was effectively over, thus ending the crisis.[9] However, the village would remain under the control of NLA until the end of the conflict in Macedonia. On December 19, 2001, Macedonian police reestablished control after re-entering the village.[17]

References

  1. ↑ https://m.mkd.mk/node/338181
  2. 1 2 3 "Macedonia resumes offensive against rebels - the Republic of North Macedonia | ReliefWeb". reliefweb.int. May 4, 2001.
  3. ↑ Krushelnycky, Askold (2008-04-09). "Macedonia: Army Launches Fresh Attack On Rebels". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Retrieved 2023-02-28.
  4. ↑ "Убиен Фадил Лимани, командант на терористите за Куманово". Вест. 2001-05-28. Archived from the original on 2013-10-02.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Dhimgjoka, Merita (2001-06-12). "Macedonia, Rebels Halt Fighting". The Washington Post.
  6. ↑ Phillips, John (2004-01-01). Macedonia: Warlords and Rebels in the Balkans. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-10268-0.
  7. 1 2 "Macedonia: Army Suspends Operations In Kumanovo-Lipkovo". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 2008-04-09. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  8. ↑ "Macedonian government launches new attack on rebels". The Guardian. 2001-06-11. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-12-21.
  9. 1 2 "Macedonia - Security: Humanitarian catastrophe averted in Kumanovo and Lipkovo - the Republic of North Macedonia | ReliefWeb". reliefweb.int. 2001-06-18. Retrieved 2023-10-18.
  10. ↑ Gall, Carlotta (2001-03-28). "Macedonia Attempts to Rout Rebels Before Talks". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  11. ↑ "Macedonia bombards rebel positions". CNN. 2001-05-04. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  12. ↑ "Macedonia resumes offensive against rebels". Relief Web International. 2001-05-04. Retrieved 2023-12-21.
  13. ↑ Steele, Jonathan; Woods, Nicholas (2001-05-08). "Macedonia pulls back from brink of declaring war". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  14. ↑ "CNN.com - Macedonia troops battle for village - June 2, 2001". edition.cnn.com. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  15. ↑ "Macedonia resumes offensive against rebels - the Republic of North Macedonia | ReliefWeb". reliefweb.int. 2001-05-04. Retrieved 2023-12-21.
  16. ↑ "Macedonia: Army Suspends Operations In Kumanovo-Lipkovo". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 2008-04-09. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
  17. ↑ "Macedonia: Police return to rebel villages - the Republic of North Macedonia | ReliefWeb". reliefweb.int. 2001-12-19. Retrieved 2023-10-18.
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