From Ndue Oroshi
Memorie.al / Among the many massacres committed by the Serbs, Montenegrins and Greeks, who were never satisfied with the looting of Albanian lands, the Massacre of the Greek Communists, on May 9, 1947, in Crete, Greece, is included. This massacre is among the most special for the type of crimes and massacres committed. It is special due to the fact that these Albanian patriots, who were staunch anti-communists, had taken political refuge in Greece. But the Greek has no faith; the communist proletarians have always cooperated among themselves, as was this cooperation between the Greek, Yugoslav and Albanian communists, for the murder of patriotic nationalists from Kosovo.
I am convinced that most of the family members of those killed did not know and cannot know even today, where their family members were killed, not to mention their graves and the place where they were hunted after their murder. , which has lost all signs.
It is worth highlighting the fact of resistance and non-surrender of these Albanian patriots from Kosovo, who, although without weapons, used everything they had, to stand heroically, where most of them were killed in an effort to never surrender alive. Three of them were burned inside the house and the rest escaped with injuries.
This massacre clearly shows that the pan-Slav communists committed crazy massacres against the Albanians, as in Kosovo, Albania, Montenegro, and Macedonia and in all ethnic Albanian territories. I am bringing to the readers this exclusive article with historical facts, about this massacre that happened on May 9, 1947.
This material was taken from the Archive of Captain Ndue Gjon Markut, which is also the archive of the “Independent National Bloc”, and these materials were brought to me by the captain’s daughter, Bianca Gjomarkaj, published in “Albania Libre”, which was an organ of “Independent National Bloc”, where we are giving it in full:
The massacre of May 9, 1947, in Crete
“On May 9, 1947, at 04:00 a.m., in the center of Fera Petra Subprefecture in Crete, a battalion of Greek communists surrounded the house where 28 Albanians from Kosovo, political immigrants, were sleeping. The Albanians were settled in this country by the Greek authorities, and they were engaged in agricultural work, near the Greek families of the country.
In this way, they provided for their living expenses. Of course, they had no weapons with them. They also had no special protection from the local authorities. They spent the whole day working and being depressed, they gathered together in a house they had assigned for sleeping and living.
On the night of May 9, 1947, the battalion of Greek communists, consisting of more than 300 people, began to surround the building of the sub-prefecture, the barracks of the Korofillakaves, and then the house where they slept. After completing the siege well, they begin the attack. The communist patrols arrest the Albanians and ask them to open the door of their house and hand them over alive.
At first, the Albanians, surprised by this unexpected event and as sleepy as they were, did not understand what was happening around their fate. That’s why they stay silent. But it doesn’t take much time and the Greek communist patrol starts firing guns at the house and they try to break the gate and enter.
At the same time, the entire battalion starts the attack, approaching the Albanians’ residence, with the aim of capturing them alive. But the Greek communists had made the calculations wrong, because they did not know that the sons of Albanians do not surrender alive to the enemy. When the Albanians saw that they were in serious danger, they began to fight against the Greek communists. But what would they fight with?!
They had no weapons other than personal bravery, except their voices and ideals. But they also had work tools, they had hoes, shovels, pickaxes, axes, they had thrones where they sat to relax when they came back from work and some piece of brick, which they could take out with their hands and nails, from the walls of the house.
With these weapons, these brave Albanians start their fight and fight for six hours straight. Meanwhile, the first anti-communists began to be killed by Greek bullets. Jonuz Emini, chairman of the group, Idriz Sallova, Latif Kuqi, Riza Matoshi, Zejnel Mehmeti, Qerim Hajdari and Halil Idrizi.
But even on the communist side, there were five killed and several wounded who retreated and left. Seeing that the Albanians were standing like men and had no intention of surrendering alive, the Greek communists set fire to the house, igniting several barrels of gasoline that were on the lower floor of the house. Immediately the whole house was surrounded by flames.
The danger became so great and death was approaching so fast, that for the Albanian warriors there was no other way but to go through the fire and the flames. Osman Sinani, attacked first, coming out of the house and, miraculously, I was able to take the gun from a Greek communist who came in front of him, whom he killed. But after a while even Osman Sinani falls to the ground killed, calling; “Long live Albania, Long live Kosovo! Down with Communism”!
After Osman, his brother Bajram Sinani attacks and, after him Isak Ahmeti, Haxhi Halili, Banush Berisha, Bajram Berisha, Kadri Berisha, Mustafa Bajraktari, Ahmet Uka, Fiqri Sejda and Hidajet Arifi. These can surprisingly escape from the flames and bullets of the Greek communists. Meanwhile, they were seriously injured; Qerim Ibrahimi, Bajram Gorani, Hysen Rama, Nazif Vata, Nazif Varoshi, Azis Murati and Istref Selmani. Of these injured the first three; Qerim Ibrahimi, Bajram Gorani and Hysen Rama died a little later.
However, Xhemal Matoshi, Rexhep Gashi and Ymer Sakoli remained inside the house amid the fire and flames. These, not being able to pass through the flames, stood and waited for death like the early men, singing the anthem of the flag and shouting “Long live the National Flag”! Bajram Sinani, one of those who escaped from the danger of the fire, goes to the priest’s house, but unfortunately he is also surrounded by enemies.
A second war begins for Bajram Sinan, who fights using the priest’s staff instead of a weapon, and any other thing that falls into his hand. He kills a Greek communist and finally escapes by jumping out of the window, hiding in a safe place. No Albanian surrendered alive, at the behest of the enraged communist savages. After this ugly event, the Greek authorities thought to secure the immigrant Albanians, gathering all those from Crete, about 400 people, in a center in Athens.
The bitter news of the tragic murder of our Albanian brothers from Kosovo caused an indescribable despair among all the Albanian exiles. The ferocity and barbarism of our enemies, instead of diminishing, seeks to increase more and more. Enver Hoxha, insatiable from the blood he shed and is still shedding within the borders of Albania, wanted to extend his savagery even beyond these borders. He got to know the criminals of his category, which unfortunately also happened in Greece, and requested that these criminals also paint their hands with the blood of Albanian refugees, who were working peacefully on the island of Crete.
By shooting at the Albanian refugees from Kosovo, Enver Hoxha was sure that he was doing a great service of loyalty, against his master, Marshal Josif Broz Tito, who has caused so much misery, to the pure Albanian that is Kosovo. However, the real tools of red barbarism had not calculated well. They suspected that the Albanian refugees of Crete would fall into their hands, as if nothing bad had happened.
Even though they had no weapons with them, the brave Albanians fought like lions during the day and sold their blood very dearly and let the red enemies understand that when they cannot escape, they accept to die in the middle of the flames of fire, why the living never surrender. In the midst of this great sorrow, the courage these brothers have shown in the face of a much stronger enemy is a real consolation to our poisoned hearts.
Our newspaper congratulates those who escaped from this danger and expresses its most sincere condolences to the tribe of martyrs, showing their heroism as an example for all other Albanians”, the newspaper “Albanie Libre” concludes the article.
As a result of this massacre carried out by the Greek communists, on May 9, 1947 in Crete, 14 Albanian patriots died heroically: 1. Jonuz Emini, leader of the group, 2. Idriz Sallova, 3. Latif Kuqi, 4. Riza Matoshi, 5. Zejnel Mehmmeti, 6. Qerim Hajdari, 7. Halil Idrizi, 8. Osman Sinani, 9. Qerim Ibrahimi, 10. Bajram Gorani, 11. Hysen Rama, 12. Xhemal Matoshi, 13. Rexhep Gashi, 14. Ymer Sakoli, while seriously injured: 15. Nazif Vata, 16. Nazif Varoshi, 17. Azis Murati and 18. Istref Selmani.
We have no more data on how these four patriots who were seriously injured ended up. But unharmed or, with lighter wounds, escaped: 19. Bajram Sinani, 20. Isak Ahmeti, 21. Haxhi Halili, 22. Banush Berisha, 23. Bajram Berisha, 24. Kadri Berisha, 25. Mustafa Bajraktari, 26. Ahmet Uka, 27. Fiqri Sejda and 28. Hidajet Arifi.
This was the tragedy of 28 Kosovo Albanians, where 14 of them were killed, burned and massacred by the Greek communists.
The others who escaped are not known about their further fate and if any family members can have any more similar testimony from these 14 survivors, it is good to bring the notes about this massacre carried out by 300 Greek communists against 28 patriotic Albanians from Kosovo, who did not give up and did not lose blood, but paid for themselves many times over.
Here, then, it is clearly seen that the reoccupation of Kosovo and other Albanian countries has been paid very dearly with the blood of 47,314 Albanian patriots. Memorie.al
