Fehmi Ajvazi, an eminent author from Kosovo, has shared his book ‘In the Kingdom of Death’ published in Albanian in 2012 in Pristina, and in Romanian in 2019, and was translated from Albanian to English 

Fehmi Ajvazi author

[In March 1999, the Serbian regime blanketed Kosovo with a contingent of 120,000 regular police, military, and civilian paramilitary forces. Just about two weeks before NATO’s intervention in Kosovo began, the region was surrounded on all sides, while pockets of the interior (villages and towns) were hit with arrests, liquidations, and massacres. Kosovo became a reservation. A kingdom called the “Kingdom of Death” established authority everywhere! However, some areas were controlled by insurgent liberation forces, and in some places, Serbian forces couldn’t penetrate. Well, the hatred between Serbs and Albanians was the same, but the bullets were the same too: they brought death to everyone, and it was no problem for the “bullet” whether the target was Albanian or Serbian. I mean, the forces of the Kosovo Liberation Army held some territory and kept it free! But about ten days before NATO planes launched their attack in their battle for Kosovo, Albanian insurgents managed to have the world’s most powerful force as their ally: the NATO alliance. However, no one had managed to master a pact with death. Just a few days before March 24th, the “Lady of Death” was the ruler of Kosovo, in reality, she was the ruler of the Albanian citizens of this extremely small territory! And for the third time in history, the state of Serbia wanted nothing more and nothing less than: the ethnic cleansing of Kosovo. Over 1 million residents before March 24, 1999, challenged “this kingdom” by saying, “Here we are, your power is not the power of God!” I had decided to stay, not to leave. I was a journalist, but also a creator. And so, I had no idea what dilemmas lay in this direction, despite the open threats from the Serbs, and I knew well that they would try to wash their hands of us like Pontius Pilate! Regardless of every situation and circumstance, I sacrificed to be a witness to a time and a history without parallel! Yes, a witness…! And everything I have said and written about literary-historical conditions is in this book – a testimony. Therefore, this book is a source and my personal experience of a time I pray will never be repeated – anywhere. Just as I pray for the souls of those who did not come out alive in this “kingdom of death” in the third millennium! Read the truth about Kosovo…  Author]

A 14th century monastery in Decan

The day departs heavily like a dinosaur. Outside, it’s cold and grim, even though spring officially began on Sunday, March 21. Spring, just like us, has a tough battle ahead: the battle to break the icy grip of winter’s rule. I constantly pray that this spring will push forward another battle: to forever separate slavery from freedom. However, as I sharpen these lines for this book I will write one day, our dream of freedom and the face of death are our “clothes.” Kosovo is at a critical point. American General Wesley Clark is said to have received political instructions for the start of bombings. However, at the heart of the storm that is about to break out, the final expectations are being set to see if dictator Milosevic will back down in the last hours or minutes before the bombings begin. However, it seems that both sides, from entirely opposite poles, have “agreed” that this should happen. In other words, there will be bombings. The West has agreed that the use of force is necessary to stop violence and terror in Kosovo, and the so-called “FRY” (a kind of Serbian mask) is aiming to exploit the historic opportunity to complete the occupation of Kosovo by entering into conflict with the West. Above all, there is information circulating that 2-3 open phone lines have been left at his disposal, so if he changes his mind, he can use one of these numbers.

Time: 16:37 minutes: The darkness of the night is slowly settling in, taking over the realm like a pilgrim of the kingdom of fire. There is no withdrawal from Belgrade in the face of NATO threats. The strike, most likely, will happen any moment now. We desire these strikes more than anything else, regardless of the price we will pay. But our feelings and emotions are indescribable, chaotic. They are somewhat like the imaginative images of the creation of the world. The gods of Paradise and of Hell are ready to descend onto the battlefield tonight. The “gods of Hell” want our destruction. And, there is no doubt: there will be destruction…! But the “gods of Paradise” are on our side, and they will try their best to prevent the destruction. However it may be, all we want is for this (Serbian enslavement) to end, even if it costs us our lives. Those who survive, may they be free and live in freedom forever.

Malisheva Kosovo

Time: 17:13 minutes: Today, during the day, the President of the United States, Bill Clinton, declared in Washington that Yugoslavia has little time to accept the peace plan that of Rambouillet, and that NATO is ready to commence attacks. As soon as it becomes clear that Ambassador Holbrooke’s mission in Belgrade has failed, officials in the Pentagon have said that the attacks may begin within a few hours. In fact, today, when the ultimatum also expires, in a way, the world has learned that Ambassador Holbrooke’s mission in Belgrade has failed. Holbrooke is said to have left the presidential office of Milosevic in Belgrade without an agreement. This means that the exact hour of the start of the attacks is not known. This hour, namely the hour of commencement of the bombings, is currently known only to the Almighty and General Wesley Clark, under whose direct command the NATO military forces are placed. The moment of the bombings is approaching like a hurricane.

The drums of war are beating everywhere. The Serbs have surrounded us on all sides, especially in areas where there is no KLA, on the roads, in courtyards, in cafes, in villages and cities, in fields and mountains. Armed to the teeth, more ferocious than hungry wolves, they are targeting us to eradicate us from the face of the earth. Without encountering organized resistance throughout the territory of

Kosovo, they are dancing the devil’s dance. The Serbs are using everything that is destructive and devastating, murderous, insulting, violent, expulsive, annihilating against us. Now they are ready to put an end to the dance of destruction, a bloody dance with a finale prepared for a long time. Pretending to have the NATO bombings as a pretext, the Serbs are ready to annihilate Kosovo by all possible political and military means.

Center of Skenderaj town in a rainy day

Time: 17:52 minutes: Everything has come to an end: the attack is about to begin. The darkness of war has fallen everywhere. Police, soldiers, snipers, armed civilians are on the streets, in courtyards, on various buildings in the capital. Kosovo is filled with paramilitary units that move up and down as if insane, in jeeps and military trucks, swinging knives, pistols, automatic rifles. With black scarves wrapped around their foreheads, black and loud shawls tied around their necks, faces smeared with war makeup, armed to the teeth with all kinds of weapons. The Serbian death squads threaten everything living. Drunk, drugged, above all, frustrated like hungry wolves, their degenerate and sadistic smiles threaten from all sides. Until this day (March 24), their presence in Kosovo has yielded an impressive result for Serbian fascist politics: about 700 Albanian villages have been leveled to the ground or turned into ruins, over 3000 Albanian civilians have been killed and massacred. The town of Deçan, located in the west and considered their “holy place,” has been hit by artillery. Rahovec, Malisheva, and others have been burned and destroyed. Mass graves, camps (like the one in the ammunition factory in Skenderaj), massive expulsions since June of last year (1998) from the Drenica, Has, Dukagjin region constitute the focus of the crimes of these bastard offspring. Throughout these March days, Serbian military and paramilitary forces have fortified themselves in various Serbian and Albanian settlements. In groups, they have abandoned their military positions and stationed themselves in urban areas, villages, public and social facilities, factories, various alleys, and the basements of civilian buildings, etc. Serbian military units, paramilitary units, and the police have left their facilities and are hiding in civilian areas, convinced that NATO will not strike them in these areas. This type of fortification is their way of hitting the Albanians twice and saving their own necks. Evening. The streets are empty. People have taken refuge in their homes and apartments. At these moments, it is very dangerous to be out on the streets. I have turned on the TV and a radio and stand before them as if before Zeus.

News, news, news: Kosovo is the global topic! With mixed emotions, I try to gather any information related to the situation. Amid the unbearable anxiety that squeezes my chest and the heavy dread that engulfs me like an octopus, the fortress of joy emerges like a comet, dictating every moment. I cannot wait until I hear the first explosion. What will happen? Well, I wouldn’t be honest if I didn’t openly admit the fear that deeply haunts me in these hours, alongside the real possibility of the final outburst of Serbian crime. However, amidst it all, irresistibly (as if from a whispering grave), a historical thought comes to my mind: with the start of the bombings, nothing will be the same as it is now. Oh, everything will change, forever. Everything, as soon as the first bomb falls. Great God, let these bombs fall, then. Great God, let everything change because, even as it is, we are dead while alive. I know, I know, I cannot measure in a normal way (in these moments) the weight of “good, future” and certainly not the weight of “bad, future”! However, I have a deep conviction in my heart and soul that change will happen from this day that is passing, and this change will occur in a way that we cannot predict accurately. And this will bring for all the living a different time and life. It will be a great, historic change. There’s something else I must write: regardless of whether it is good or bad, in Kosovo, there is no longer any space for coexistence and understanding between Albanians and Serbs, meaning, between Pristina and Belgrade. Thus, as things stand today in Kosovo, there is no place or shelter left for both sides. (Continues)

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Published under International Cooperation with "Sindh Courier"