Battle of Llapushnik

About 200 Serbian soldiers and policemen set out on July 25, at around 10:00 a.m., to break the KLA stronghold Lapušnik.M53/59 Praga vehicles, a M36 and a T-55 tank were also included as direct fire support.

As the KLA were in deep cover, the artillery preparation of the Serbian forces lasted 60 minutes. After that, the infantry launched an attack. The first wave of attacks consisted of members of the police who advanced up to 350 meters from the KLA positions, before they were met with fire. The front positions of the KLA were destroyed by fire from BRDM vehicles and the M53/59 Praga, after which the KLA retreated along dug trenches through the forest to a reserve position. Part of the infantry, about thirty policemen who were walking through the cornfields on the right wing, wedged themselves into the KLA's defense, which was set up in the shape of a horseshoe. In fact, the police were ambushed and radioed for help.[3][4]

Sergeant Nenad Vuković with BRDM and one as mobile fire support were sent to help the ambushed policemen. When they went out on the road, they found themselves under fire from RBRs and a heavy Browning machine gun. Sergeant Vuković crossed about a hundred meters, opening fire from the movement, entered the cornfield and with a BRDM, from a 14.5 mm machine gun, attacked the KLA soldiers in cover, enabling the besieged policemen to get out of the ring towards the surrounding houses. THe BRDM-2 got stuck while exiting the asphalt road, falling into the canal with its rear wheels, while the Praga was about 100 meters behind that vehicle. At least two rockets from RBR Osa were fired at the vehicle. These missed the vehicle, but detonations in the immediate vicinity threw the vehicle onto the road and incapacitate it. The crew of the BRDM opened fire and the vehicle was hit by a rocket from the RBR, which did not detonate but caused damage. After that, the BRDM-2 took cover between the houses.[3][4]

Subsequently all the vehicles lined up in a battle line and attacked the positions of the KLA with all means. After 20 minutes, the firing stopped and the KLA was defeated, fleeing along the railway towards the Berisha mountains. Soon, soldiers and policemen enter the trenches where about 60 KLA soldiers, all of whom were in uniform, died. One KLA soldier who strayed during the fighting was also arrested.[3][4]

Kadri Veseli a Kosovo Politician and former founder and leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army recalled it as one of the most fierce battles, saying that the dimensions of frontal fighting in Llapushnik resonated throughout Europe and increased the populations confidence in the strength of the Kosovo Liberation Army with a massive mobilisation.[5]

• "Ballina". old.kosovapress.com. Retrieved 2022-01-07.
• "Senior Kosovo Politician Kadri Veseli Indicted for War Crimes". Balkan Insight. 2020-11-05. Retrieved 2022-01-07.
• "Kosovo conflict | Summary & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2022-01-07.