Blace: Former KLA Fighter Puskolji Detained on Warrant

Fadil Puskolji, a former fighter in the so called Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), was detained at the Blace border crossing between Kosovo and North Macedonia under a warrant issued by Serbian authorities. After his identity was checked and he was questioned by Macedonian police, he was released the same day.

For Serbia, this is one more case in a series in which warrants issued against former KLA fighters reach border crossings across the region, while Pristina routinely describes these actions as pressure on people it regards as war veterans. That divide, judicial warrants on one side and political defense on the other, has strained relations between Belgrade and Pristina for years and regularly comes up in talks with foreign mediators.

What happened at the Blace, Elez Han crossing

Puskolji was detained at the Blace, Elez Han crossing, on North Macedonian territory, while trying to cross into Kosovo. According to his own account, the detention followed a warrant issued by Serbian authorities, over what he says was his membership in the KLA during the 1990s.

News of the detention was first reported by the Pristina based outlet Koha, and Puskolji confirmed the arrest himself on his Facebook account, where he called on institutions in Pristina to respond immediately.

“The arrest, according to the information given, is linked to the fact that I am a member of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). I am asking the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo to immediately take all necessary measures to resolve this case and protect my rights,” Puskolji wrote on Facebook.

Albanian language outlets do not agree on exactly when the detention took place. Tanjug, citing Koha, reports that Puskolji was arrested during the night between September 22 and 23. North Macedonia’s Monitor.mk dates the report of the detention to September 22, while Kosovo’s INA Online ties the event to September 23. The reason for the discrepancy between sources has not been explained, and no official statement resolving the question had been issued by the time this article was published.

Puskolji released after being checked

According to INA Online, Macedonian police released Puskolji after questioning him and verifying his identity. He then thanked officers of the North Macedonia police, in particular, as he put it, officers of Albanian ethnicity, for their correct conduct throughout the process.

“Pas nje interviste dhe marrjes në pyetje, jam liruar nga Policia e Maqedonisë së Veriut. Dua ta falënderoj Policinë e Maqedonisë së Veriut, në veçanti pjesëtarët e policisë shqiptare, për korrektësinë, respektin dhe sjelljen e mirë gjatë gjithë procedurës. UÇK dje, liri sot!” Puskolji wrote on his social media profile, translated as: “After an interview and questioning, I have been released by the North Macedonia police. I want to thank the North Macedonia police, in particular the officers of Albanian ethnicity, for their correctness, respect and good conduct throughout the entire procedure. KLA yesterday, freedom today!”

No official statement from North Macedonian authorities addressing the reasons for Puskolji’s release has been published, nor has it been confirmed whether, or how, the substance of Serbia’s warrant was considered.

The case fits a wider pattern

Zyrtare.net notes that this is not an isolated case. The same outlet reports that two years ago, North Macedonia detained another former KLA fighter, Blerim Ramadani, also under a Serbian warrant. On the same day Puskolji was detained, according to Zyrtare.net, Croatia released Bajrami Bajrami, a former KLA fighter who had been arrested a month earlier under the same type of warrant from Serbian authorities, from detention.

Cases like these regularly surface at border crossings across the region, since Serbia’s warrants against former KLA fighters sit in international databases and are checked routinely by border services in neighboring countries, whether in North Macedonia, Croatia or any other state these individuals pass through.