Attacks on Pono&scaron;evac

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Between 3 and 6 May 1998, the village of Ponoševac was the site of a clash fought between the forces of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and the Yugoslav police (MUP) during the Kosovo War.
Background
Weapons for Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) members were distributed at the mosque in Ponoševac. In that direction there are passes up to 650 meters high, easy and suitable for incursions from Albania, until the border patrols of the Yugoslav Army closed that part of the border. On the Albanian side were the two largest KLA training bases, in Kukës and Kojel. The KLA had the initiative in this area, so small groups of police officers could safely move around Ponoševac only during the day, and only in police convoys and armored vehicles. There were about 200 KLA soldiers in the village, whose commander was Rezak Alija, and his deputy was Hasan Alija.
Yugoslav forces were repelled from Albanian homes and ran back to the police station where they barricaded themselves inside. The police station was attacked by the KLA whilst Yugoslav forces waited for reinforcements.
Journalistic teams did not have access to the region for security reasons. One reporter who managed to reach Ponoševac on 5 May saw a police pickup truck blown up by a gunfier on a local road. He met a Yugoslav officer who told him to leave the area.
On that day, the Yugoslav police announced that they were in full control of Ponoševac and that about 200 KLA members were in the encirclement the day before its capture. The following day, on 6 May, it was announced that the KLA group had been defeated and had retreated to the hills and surrounding villages.
These claims by the Serbian authorities, however, have been deemed as untrue. After Yugoslav forces reported to have won and the fighting to have stopped, artillery and mortar fire could still be heard. The Kosovo Information Centre (KIC) denied Reuters reports that a group of 200 armed Albanians were surrounded by the police in Ponoševac.

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