Surviving a massacre

On April 17, 1999, around 4:00 p.m., two members of the Serbian forces entered the courtyard of the Muqolli family’s home in Poklek, Drenas. Inside, 59 people — mostly women, children and the elderly — had taken shelter. These were local refugees, neighbors and people from other parts of Kosovo, all seeking safety from the widespread violence during the Kosovo war.

Sinan Muqolli stepped out into the yard and told the Serbian forces that the house consisted mostly of women and children. Despite this, the soldiers forced everyone outside, searched them, and then ordered them back into the house, instructing them to lock the doors.

Behind those closed doors, one of the most horrific massacres of the Kosovo war took place. It was brutal not only in the method of execution but also because of the large number of women and children inside.

After killing almost everyone, the Serbian forces poured two cans of gasoline and set fire to the room.

In addition to burning the bodies of the murdered civilians, they also burned alive four people who had initially escaped the shooting. Among them was a two-year-old child.

A total of 53 civilians were killed in this massacre, including 24 women and 23 children. Most of the children were under the age of seven, and two were one-year-old babies.

Six people managed to survive. One of them was Elhame Muqolli, who was 14 years old at the time. She recalls her life, and that of her family, before the massacre, as well as the deep scars it left on her and their family home.