26 years ago, he was the first to tell the world that a crime against humanity was being committed in Racak.
Nearly three decades later, the then head of the OSCE Verification Mission in Kosovo, Ambassador William Walker, returns to the village that few people once knew.
After paying tribute at the Memorial Complex, he said he is amazed by the large number of citizens visiting the complex.
“Every year, I am amazed by the number of people who come here from all over the country. It used to be mainly a memorial ceremony organized by the Municipality of Shtime, but now there are people from all over Kosovo and I suppose from all over the world. So, thank you for covering this event, I wish you all a very happy day and I wish all the people of Kosovo a Happy New Year. Thank you very much,” he said.
In the early morning of January 15, 1999, children, women, and the elderly were brutally murdered.
The serious incident in Recak prompted an international response, with NATO deciding to attack Serbian military and police targets – a bombing campaign that lasted 78 days. It ended on June 10, 1999, when the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 was adopted.
After this, over 800,000 Kosovo Albanians, forcibly expelled, began to return to their homes.