Early life and World War I Jusuf Baftjari, born in 1883 in the village of
Lipovicë located in the
Karadak Highlands, was renowned for his wisdom, piety, and patriotism. When Serbia
reoccupied Kosovo in the autumn of 1918, its forces were met by
Albanians revolting against their rule, seeking freedom and national unity. To suppress the uprising and disarm the Albanians, Serbia imposed military rule in Kosovo and undertook harsh measures against the local population. One of the Albanian families from
Karadak that had suffered from this terror was the family of Jusuf Baftjari, against whom a military operation had been launched in October 1918; three members of his family were killed in the fighting. Among the adult members of this family, only Jusuf Baftjari had survived the massacre. Cena Stojković (a famous Chetnik from the area), together with 4-5 other Chetnik Serbs and a number of gendarmes, surrounded his house and captured his father, brother, and nephew, while his wife was mistreated. Jusuf Baftjari escaped by hiding in the mountains. The Serb and French army sent them towards the
Kopilaqa mountain and killed them in the village of
Korbliç. Ten days later, Jusuf Baftjari followed the Chetniks and took revenge, killing Cena Stojković and another Chetnik. Afterward, Jusuf Baftjari became a
Kachak and joined the
Cheta of Sali Staneci, operating actively in the Karadak zone within the
Kachak movement. Jusuf Baftjari surrendered three years later in 1921, and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. He served his sentence in
Zenica,
Bosnia, but was released 11 years later in 1932.
Ballist uprising in Karadak during World War II Prelaude After the occupation and
partition of Kosovo among
fascist states, from mid-May 1941, the majority of the
Gjilan district joined
Fascist Albania, while
Karadak remained under
Bulgarian administration. The Albanians of Karadak would not accept the
Bulgarian occupation, while the Serbian population of this district largely declared themselves as "Bulgarians of Morava" and were placed in the service of the occupiers against the
Albanian population. This led many Albanian families from these villages to be forced to abandon their homes and settle in villages beyond the river
Morava. Among these families were those of Jusuf Baftjari's village, who had been relocated since March 1942 to the village of Capar and the village of Malishevë, where they stayed until the
surrender of fascist Bulgaria in 1944.
Early fighting From the early days of the Bulgarian occupation, Jusuf Baftjari formed his
resistance unit, with whom he would stand armed in defense of the Albanian population of the region against the fascist Bulgarian occupiers and their Serbian collaborators. The prisoners were sent to the
Preševo prison, while the deceased were buried by the villagers of
Rajince.
Second Battle of Preševo Two months following the first Battle of Preševo, the partisans again attacked the Preševo Valley on 10-11 November 1944. valiantly resisted for hours, defeating the
Partisans over and over again for 4 consecutive assaults. In a vengeful response to their losses,
Partisan forces razed 73 in Myqybabë and many more in numerous other villages across
Karadak, including those in Jusuf Baftjari's village. Witnesses of the era recount how the flames engulfing Albanian homes were visible from
Gjilan, creating the illusion of
Karadak ablaze in its entirety.
Battle of Desivojca and recapture of Gjilan On 1 December 1944, during a meeting in Tërpezë (
Viti), in which Jusuf Baftjari participated in, it was decided that all Albanian nationalist forces should unite to liberate and safeguard
Gjilan and
Ferizaj from the atrocities committed by the
Partisans and
Chetniks. Following this decision, the Committee of Albanian Resistance for Eastern Kosovo was established on 17 December 1944, in the village
Zarbincë of
Hashania.
Mulla Idriz Gjilani was appointed as the commander in chief. The committee included resistance unit commanders from
Karadak and
Gollak, such as Xheladin Kurbalia, Jusuf Baftjari, Ymer Myqybaba,
Sylë Hotla, and others, aiming to swiftly implement defensive measures against
Partisan-
Chetnik attacks along the border of Eastern Kosovo. On 19 December 1944, the 17th Macedonian Brigade, numbering 1800 men, advanced towards
Desivojca, seizing control of the surrounding
Gollak Highlands before launching an attack on the village. Upon their arrival, the brigade immediately began perpetrating acts of violence and atrocities, including burning homes and killing innocent civilians. Jusuf Baftjari's
Cheta, maintained communication with other
Ballist groups engaged in guerrilla warfare in
Karadak, including those led by Ali Staneci, Hetë Koka, Hasan Ali Remniku, Hajdar Malisheva, and others. Eventually, representatives of these groups, including Jusuf Baftjari, convened at the Kopilaça Congress on August 15-16, 1945, organized by the remaining
Ballists and
Kachaks in
Karadak. During the congress, Albanian leaders pledged to continue fighting against the communist occupiers. However, in October 1945, Albanian Ballists in
Karadak received a letter from
Muharrem Bajraktari and
Mid'hat Frashëri, urging them to flee to
Greece. In response,
Mulla Idriz Gjilani intervened, advising the resistance units not to abandon
Kosovo but to persist in the fight. Jusuf Baftjari and his
Cheta remained steadfast in their commitment to
Mulla Idriz Gjilani's directive. By the end of 1946, Yugoslav authorities initiated a comprehensive military operation against Albanian Resistance forces across
Kosovo. Despite this crackdown, only 36 rebels, mostly from
Karadak, out of 1,735 fighters distributed among 55 guerrilla groups, survived and continued the resistance beyond March 1947.
Surrender and Execution After numerous failed operations to capture or eliminate Jusuf Baftjari and his
Cheta, the
Yugoslav Partisans turned to treachery. Vojo Vojvodić, a Montenegrin leader of the
Yugoslav Partisans, assured Jusuf Baftjari that if he surrendered, he would face imprisonment under the Amnesty Law, rather than execution. The relentless torture inflicted by the
Yugoslav Partisans on their families and friends, along with the discovery of their hideouts, became unbearable. Even Jusuf Baftjari, realizing that all possibilities for continued resistance were closing, surrendered togetether with his two sons, Selim and Qazim, in
Uglar on February 20, 1947. Daut Xhelili of Pogragjë, a former activist, recalled being present when the
Yugoslav Partisans brought Jusuf Baftjari to
Pogragjë, noting that he refused to surrender his rifle and kissed its barrel. Addressing Vojvodić, Jusuf Baftjari explained his surrender, citing Vojvodić's Montenegrin heritage and the trust that should be inherent in a Montenegrin's word, implying that without this trust, the
Partisans would not have captured him alive. Shortly after however, Jusuf Baftjari was sentenced to death by the Yugoslav court in
Gjilan. According to memorial records regarding his execution, a Serb witness named Zarije, a merchant from Gjilan who was also imprisoned in the Gjilan prison, recounted: "Following Jusuf Baftjari's death sentence, one day Vojo Vojvodić, the
Partisan chief in Gjilan, visited the prison yard. Upon spotting him through the window, Jusuf Baftjari immediately addressed him: 'Where is your Montenegrin promise?' Vojo simply bowed his head and departed.". On the eve of his execution, Jusuf Baftjari spent the entire night reading the
Quran and ultimately prayed two
rakats. Zarije also remarked: "Even in the face of execution, Jusuf Baftjari displayed no fear." During his farewell with his sons, he urged them not to despair, asserting: 'Allah gives life and He takes it; we have fought for our fatherland and faith, and for that, we must be prepared to die.'" Jusuf Baftjari was executed on July 17, 1948. == Legacy ==