Vucevic: 1999 Battle of Pastrik symbol of our youth's fight on sacred Serbian soil

BELGRADE - Serbian Progressive Party leader Milos Vucevic, who is also adviser to the president of Serbia, said on Tuesday the 1999 battle on Mt Pastrik, Kosovo-Metohija, was a symbol of an unwavering fight of young people on sacred Serbian soil.

"The battle for Pastrik is proof of an unwavering fight of young heroes against Albanian terrorists on sacred Serbian soil," Vucevic posted on Instagram on the 27th anniversary of the heroic battle.

The Battle of Pastrik began on May 26, 1999, when the so-called "Kosovo Liberation Army", supported by Albanian army and NATO troops, attacked Yugoslav Army units from Albanian territory in the Gorozup area on Mt Pastrik, along the border strip west of Prizren.

Following a defeat at Kosare, situated to the north, the so-called "KLA" made another attempt to penetrate the border line and get into the Metohija region and then deeper into Serbia.

The clashes on Mt Pastrik lasted until June 14, 1999, claiming the lives of 26 Yugoslav Army troops, mostly as a result of attacks by NATO warplanes.

On the other hand, 453 "KLA" members were killed in the Pastrik operational zone and more than 700 others were wounded.