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54-673: With the triumph of communism in Albania after the end of World War II, many of the political actors in Albania during World War II had to flee the country. Many of them collaborated with western governments and their secret services in seeking to overthrow the communists, and thus changing the form of the regime in Albania. The members of the committee were heterogeneous. Most were former Balli Kombëtar (Albanian National Front) members including Mithat Frashëri , Abas Ermenji , Vasil Andoni , Hafëz Jusuf Azemi and Ali Klissura . There were also Legaliteti members including their leader Abaz Kupi ,

108-709: A Kosovar Albanian became chairman with the support of Xhafer Deva who had settled in the USA. Abas Ermenji continued to work in France, where he published the journal "Qëndresa Shqiptare" ( Albanian : Albanian Resistance ). The committee collaborated with the CIA in forming the Company 4000 military units, stationed in Hohenbrunn , Bavaria , West Germany in 1950. The "company" consisted of trained military units, supporting

162-818: A close acquaintance of the Curri, he was given a scholarship from the Albanian government and sent to study in Austria in 1921. There he studied in Graz and later in the Theresianum of Vienna . He would remain there until his graduation from the University of Vienna in history. He received a doctorate (PhD) there with the thesis "The Congress of Berlin and north-eastern Albania" in 1934, led by Carl Patsch . After that he returned to Albania. Krasniqi worked as

216-742: A hardline Albanian nationalist, tried at various times to cooperate with the Communist-dominated Liberation Front (LANÇ). By January 1943, in Southern Albania, some Partisan units fought alongside the Balli Kombëtar during the Battle of Gjorm where they defeated and routed the Italian troops. In February 1943, he organized a meeting with communist-led LANÇ representatives and an agreement for cooperation

270-552: A meeting with King Zog trying to persuade him to recognize the committee. The former King of Albania, Ahmet Zogu , opposed the committee even though his supporter Abaz Kupi was one of the founders, arguing that he was the only legitimate representative of Albania. The committee published the biweekly journal Shqiperia (Albania) in Albanian . The committee moved its base to New York City . After Frashëri's death on 3 October 1949, Hasan Dosti took over, but later Rexhep Krasniqi ,

324-620: A part of Albania, because they stood for the restoration of occupied nations under their borders as they existed prior to World War II . Despite their lukewarm attitude towards the Allies, the Ballists feared that an Allied victory in the war might well result in LANÇ victory and communist control of Albania. Their lukewarm attitude towards the British was also fostered by their desire to preserve

378-412: A pro-monarchist and former King Zog I 's secretary, Myftar Spahiu and Gani Tafilaj from Legaliteti, with Halil Maçi, Vasil Andoni, and Abaz Ermenji from Balli Kombëtar. Gaqo Gogo served as Executive Secretary, while Abaz Kupi was appointed chairman of the military junta , with Ermenji and Kryeziu as his deputies. On 6 September 1949, the committee announced its creation in a BBC radio transmission. In

432-604: A strong hatred for the Communists. After forming the collaborator government, the Ballists pressed hard against the Communists. They destroyed a fairly large Communist partisan group southwest of Tirana. By the Fall of 1943 the Ballists, assisted by German forces, were also involved in vicious fighting against the Northern Epirus Liberation Front in Southern Albania. This Greek Nationalist group

486-625: A teacher in Shkodër , Gjirokastër . In 1937 he went to Tirana where he worked again as a teacher for a short time, after which he started as an official in the Ministry of Education of Albania . Shortly after the Italian invasion of Albania in April 1939, Krasniqi was arrested and interned for a short time in the "Porto Palermo" camp due to his nationalistic views. With his return to Albania, he

540-626: The Albanian Subversion , though it was never effective. With Albania joining the UN in 1955, the committee's activities diminished over the years, but it continued to organize political gatherings, conferences and seminars. Over 15,000 Albanian refugees were resettled in the United States through its efforts. Krasniqi published the newspaper "The Free Albanian" ( Albanian : Shqiptari i lirë ) from November 1957 to 1970. The committee

594-709: The cabinet of Fiqri Dine , also serving as deputy-chairman of the Parliament. With the Communists coming to power in Albania and Kosovo being reinstated as part of Yugoslavia , Krasniqi, with other leaders of the Second League of Prizren, went first to Vienna via Zagreb . He then went to Italy and Turkey and then to Syria where he stayed a short time. After Syria, he settled in Melbourne , Australia. With an invitation from US State Department and

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648-489: The "Blloku Independent" (Independent Block) of pro-Italian and/or collaborationist elements who had been involved with Albanian puppet governments during the war, (e.g. Ernest Koliqi , Mustafa Kruja , Gjon Marka Gjoni , Shefqet Verlaci ) anti-fascist and anti-communist guerrillas (led by Said Bey Kryeziu ) who cooperated with British-American emissaries during the war, other independent anti-communists, e.g. Muharrem Bajraktari , as well as other political factions including

702-541: The "Peasant League" ( Albanian : Lidhja Katundare ). Preparations for the Committee started in Rome in 1948, at the initiative of Legaliteti. After the rejection of Balli Kombëtar (due to political antagonism against them in place since World War II), Balli's leader Mithat Frashëri took the initiative. However, strong confrontations took place between Balli members and "Blloku Independent" members who decided to stay out of

756-484: The Albanian diaspora to overthrow Enver Hoxha's Communist regime in Albania. Starting in 1949 British and American trained Albanian fighters (consisting of men from Balli Kombëtar and the monarchist movement, known as Legaliteti ) were parachuted into Albania with the aim of organizing a popular revolt against Hoxha, marking the start of the Albanian Subversion . The operation failed, thanks in no small part to infamous double agent Kim Philby , who leaked crucial details of

810-566: The Albanian partisans of communist affiliation, led by Enver Hoxha and grouped in the "Movement of National Liberation" ( LANÇ , for its acronym in Albanian), trying to attract them to the nationalist cause. However, the Balli Kombëtar condemned any cooperation of the LNC with the Yugoslav partisans, whom it considered natural enemies of Albania, which would soon be a deal breaker. With Italy on

864-751: The Balli Kombëtar was: Shqipëria Shqiptarëve, Vdekje Tradhëtarëve (Albania to the Albanians, Death to the Traitors). Eventually, the Balli Kombëtar joined the Nazi Germany -established puppet government as part of the German occupation of Albania and fought as an ally against communist guerrilla groups. The Balli Kombëtar engaged in significant acts of terror culminating in atrocities committed against Serb and Greek civilians. Although Këlcyra and Frashëri had initiated opposition actions against

918-702: The Cham contingent numbered 150 men, and, according to German Major Stöckert, "performed very well". Under the idea of creating a racially pure Greater Albania, the Balli Kombëtar enacted campaigns of terror against Serb civilians in Kosovo and Montenegro. . Following the founding of the Second League of Prizren , the Balli Kombëtar combined with the SS Skanderbeg division massacred thousands of Serbs and expelled between 10,000 and 100,000 Serb civilians from

972-582: The Communists were using the arms they received to fight fellow Albanians far more than to harass the Germans. The west noted that the Communists could not have won without the supplies and armaments from the British, America and Yugoslavia, and that the LANÇ were not afraid of murdering their own countrymen. The Ballists in Kosovo and Vardar region rose to prominence following the capitulation of Italy in September 1943. They seized Struga and Debar from

1026-491: The Italian authorities almost from the beginning of the fascist occupation in 1939 , they had practically not developed any military organization for open struggle against the invader. Albanian nationalists from the end of 1942 began an irregular fight against the Italian garrisons. The Balli Kombëtar was officially founded in November 1942 by joining the efforts of a series of nationalists. It tried to find an agreement with

1080-628: The Italian period in prison in Porto Romano near Durrës . Mitrovica's cabinet, most of whom had credentials as nationalists as well as some German or Austrian connection, included Xhafer Deva . Deva, a leading Ballist also from Kosovo, was appointed Minister of the Interior in the Government of Rexhep Mitrovica and collaborated with the Germans to oppose the spread of Communist forces in the north, effectively giving him direct command over

1134-648: The Italians on 9 September 1943, taking much of the military equipment left behind. Following the establishment of the Albanian Kingdom , leading members of the Balli Kombetar from Kosovo became involved in forming the new government. On 6 November 1943, Berlin announced that the regents and the assembly had formed a government headed by Kosovar Albanian Rexhep Mitrovica , who had joined the Balli Kombëtar resistance movement in 1942 and spent much of

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1188-622: The Italians, were threatened by the superior forces of the LANÇ and the Yugoslav Partisans , who were backed by the Allies. In the autumn of 1943, Nazi Germany occupied all of Albania after Italy was defeated. Fearing reprisals from larger forces, the Balli Kombëtar made a deal with the Germans and formed a "neutral government" in Tirana which continued its war with the LANÇ and the Yugoslav Partisans. Safet Butka ,

1242-588: The Nazis brought about the one thing they had sought to prevent – a Communist-dominated government. Balli Kombëtar fighters fled the Balkans to Austria, the United States, Australia, Switzerland and South America . The Ballists who did not escape were executed. An organization was set up in exile. Many Ballists that managed to escape Albania subsequently set up the CIA backed Free Albania Committee , aimed at organising

1296-499: The Ottoman Empire were unfairly partitioned during World War I amongst Yugoslavia and Greece. After World War II , Midhat Frashëri began advocating for a Greater Albania . When Midhat Frashëri formed the Balli Kombëtar, it was based on his nationalist ideas and the old ideologies of Abdyl Frashëri , Ymer Prizreni and Isa Boletini . The works of Franz Nopcsa , Johann Georg von Hahn and Milan Šufflay , helped strengthen

1350-539: The Yugoslavs and the Greeks as their real enemies. The Mukje Agreement immediately triggered a hostile reaction from the Yugoslav representative in Albania, Svetozar Vukmanoviċ . He denounced the agreement and put pressure on the LANÇ to repute it immediately, and Yugoslav Communist leader Milovan Đilas subsequently described the Balli Kombëtar as "Albanian Fascists". The Balli Kombëtar, which had fought against

1404-628: The brink of defeat in 1943, the Albanian National Liberation Movement (LANÇ) and the Balli Kombëtar organized a meeting in the village of Mukje. The Balli Kombëtar entered into a fragile alliance with the communist-led LANÇ, and acted as a resistance group against the Italians. Following the Mukje Agreement , the vague mutual tolerance that had existed between the Ballists and LANÇ quickly evaporated. The Allies too could not guarantee that Kosovo would be

1458-456: The capitulation of Italy, was attacked by the Ballists of Xhem Hasa in early November 1943. After 7 days of fierce fighting, the Partisans were defeated and forced to retreat from the city. Fiqri Dine , Xhem Hasa and Hysni Dema, as well as three German Majors, also directed military campaigns against the Albanian and Yugoslav partisans. When Maqellarë, midway between Debar and Peshkopi,

1512-629: The collection of weapons in Kosovo and the arrest of prominent Albanians. The order was not well received and, combined with passions felt about Kosovo, inflamed an insurrection. On 2 December 1944, anti-communist Albanians from the Drenica region attacked the Trepca mining complex and other targets. Numbering at most 2,000 men, these anti-communists managed to hold off a Partisan force of 30,000 troops for two months. Similarly in Kičevo , Gostivar and Tetovo ,

1566-493: The combined Chetnik - Yugoslav Partisan forces back from Novi Pazar , and crushed their stronghold in Banja . Novi Pazar remained under the control of Acif Hadziahmetovic who was a member of the nationalist Balli Kombëtar movement, right up until December 1944. During this time the region between Ballist held Novi Pazar and Chetnik controlled Raška , witnessed constant fighting between the Albanians, Yugoslav Muslims and Serbs in

1620-547: The committee's creation and activities. Balli Komb%C3%ABtar The Balli Kombëtar (literally National Front ) was an Albanian nationalist , collaborationist , and anti-communist resistance movement during the Second World War . It was led by Ali Këlcyra and by Midhat Frashëri . The movement was formed by members from the landowning elite, liberal nationalists opposed to communism , and other sectors of society in Albania. The motto of

1674-590: The committee. The US State Department did not want any of the Blloku members involved in the committee due to their pro Italian/German stance during the war, but there was support for guerillas like Ismail Vërlaci of Gjon Markagjoni to join as unaffiliated individuals. An office was opened in Paris on 1 July 1949. The "Free Albania" National Committee was officially constituted on 7 July (although some Albanian sources place it later in time, on 26 August 1949). Mithat Frashëri

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1728-585: The communists declared victory in 1945. In 1996 it won 5 percent of the popular vote and two seats in parliament. It has since declined. In the 2001 elections it was part of the Union for Victory ( Bashkimi për Fitoren ) coalition which received 37.1% of the vote and 46 members of parliament. The National Front has chapters in Kosovo, led by Sylejman Daka & in North Macedonia, led by Vebi Xhemaili. Midhat Frashëri believed that Albanian provinces under

1782-481: The following days, Mithat Frashëri organized a press conference, which created a conflict with pro- Yugoslavian British authorities , who opposed Frashëri's words which included " Kosovo ", stating that he should speak about only those territories that were part of the Albanian state. Soon after, the British intelligence officer Billy McLean together with Alan Hare and Harold Perkins flew to Alexandria , Egypt where they joined Julian Amery and Robert Low. They had

1836-433: The following ten-point program, also known as the "Decalogue" The Decalogue states: After World War II ended, the Balli Kombëtar were defeated by Yugoslav and Albanian communists. The Ballists were so thoroughly discredited by their collaboration with the Nazis that there was no chance of them having a role in postwar Albania, though it took until 1945 to finish them off. Ironically, the Ballists' decision to work with

1890-561: The forces of the new government. The fighting in Kosovo took on an ethnic and ideological basis with the Albanian Balli Kombetar forces fighting the predominantly Serb Partisans . In Vardar Macedonia, when it was a part of the independent state of Albania, the German and Ballist forces had occasional skirmishes with Yugoslav partisans. Kicevo , which remained in the hands of Macedonian and Albanian Partisan units following

1944-707: The narrow valley that separates the two towns. Balli Kombëtar was also active in northwestern Greece, in particular in a region referred to by Albanians as Chameria . Administration of the Thesprotia prefecture was handed over to the Albanians, although this region was not officially annexed into the Albanian kingdom. The "Balli Kombëtar Çam" (Cham National Front), founded in 1943 by Nuri Dino, received full German support since they were willing to fight both Albanian and Greek Communist Partisans. These units were used in anti-partisan operations in Greece codenamed Augustus . By

1998-410: The nationalists' cause. The Balli Kombëtar believed that Albanians were "Aryans of Illyrian heritage". This helped gaining support by the Nazis. The party had also a strong agrarian socialist wing, which gained the leadership of the party after the war with its leader Abaz Ermenji , and also Zef Pali, Halil Maçi and Vasil Andoni . The original objectives of Balli Kombëtar were set out in 1942 in

2052-466: The occupied united Albanian state under the borders drawn by the Italians in 1941, for they bitterly opposed and dreaded the loss of Kosovo and Debar to Yugoslavia once again, and feared that the Allies in their support of the Greeks might prevent them from claiming Chameria and deprive them of their southern provinces of Korçe and Gjirokaster , the heartland of their liberation movement. They regarded

2106-455: The plan to the communist authorities who were consequently able to intercept many of the fighters upon arrival. The subversion cost the lives of at least 300 men and for a long time was one of the most carefully concealed secrets of the Cold War. In 1950, the Balli Kombëtar (in-exile) was divided into two wings, one Agrarian headed by Abas Ermenji , and one headed by Ali Këlcyra . Tetovo

2160-439: The region. In October 1943 during a large-scale German offensive in southern Albania , the Balli Kombëtar in conjunction with German troops attacked Greek villages and committed numerous atrocities including burning villages and executing civilians. The Balli Kombëtar was revived in Albania as a political party in the early 1990s. Founded under the leadership of Abas Ermenji , a surviving Ballist, who escaped from Albania when

2214-464: The remaining Ballists tried to remain in control of the region after the Yugoslav Partisans announced victory. Now "an armed uprising of massive proportions" broke out in Kosovo led by the Balli Kombëtar (which still had around 9,000 men under arms at the time), which aimed to resist incorporation of Kosovo into communist Yugoslavia. It was only in July 1945 that the Yugoslav Partisans were able to put down

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2268-516: The south of Albania, the rivalry between the Communists and the Balli Kombëtar heated up. The Communists almost immediately repudiated the Mukaj agreement, and fearing the British might open a second front in the Balkans and lend their support to the Ballists, they issued orders that the Balli Kombëtar be eliminated wherever it was found. These factors contributed to members of the Balli Kombëtar forming

2322-482: The suffering they had endured over previous two decades, burning perhaps as many as 30,000 houses belonging to Serbs and Montenegrins . Most vulnerable to these attacks were Serbs who had settled in Kosovo in the interwar period . In October 1944, as the German Army began retreating through Kosovo, fierce battles between the Germans and the Partisans broke out. After the Germans had been driven out, Tito ordered

2376-573: The support of Xhafer Deva , he settled in the USA in 1954. There he took over the leadership of the "Free Albania" National Committee from Hasan Dosti . The Committee was an opponent of the Communist regime of Enver Hoxha , and comprised key anti-communist Albanian emigres. The Committee served as a government-in-exile until 1955 when Albania joined the UN . After that, the Committee continued to organize political gatherings, conferences, and seminars. Over 15,000 Albanian refugees were resettled in

2430-638: The time Operation Augustus ended, a larger number Chams were recruited for armed support. Their support was appreciated by the Germans: Lt Colonel Josef Remold remarked that "with their knowledge of the surrounding area, they have proved their value in the scouting missions". On several occasions, these scouting missions engaged EDES units in combat. On 27 September (1943), combined German and Cham forces launched large scale operation in villages north of Paramythia: Eleftherochori, Seliani, Semelika, Aghios Nikolaos. In this operation

2484-568: The uprising and establish their control over Kosovo. Parts of Montenegro and the Sandžak were annexed into Albania in 1941. The cities included Bijelo Polje , Tutin , Plav , Gusinje, Rozaje and Ulcinj . Some of the Yugoslav Muslims that lived in these regions sided with the Albanians. Acif Hadziahmetovic , former mayor of Novi Pazar and member of Nexhip Draga 's party, and Ballist forces under Shaban Polluzha successfully repelled

2538-517: Was an Albanian-American historian, teacher, nationalist, and anti-communist politician and activist. A Kosovar Albanian , he is remembered for his role in the Second League of Prizren , and long time leadership of the "Free Albania" National Committee . Krasniqi was born in Gjakova on 24 April 1906. He remained an orphan at a very young age and was raised in Bajram Curri 's family. As

2592-468: Was destroyed during these clashes and was eliminated as a fighting force. With the Grand Alliance established, the Germans began losing the war. This also affected the situation in Albania as the Germans could not supply the Ballists. With the current situation favouring the Communists, the partisans began a full-scale attack on the Balli Kombëtar. British liaison officers in Albania noted that

2646-567: Was its chairman, with other members of the Directing Board being: Nuçi Kotta (son of the Albanian former Prime Minister Kostaq Kotta ), Abaz Kupi, Said Kryeziu, and Zef Pali. There was also a national committee consisting of Eqrem Telhai of the "Peasant League" (Albanian: Lidhja Katundare ), Hysni Mulleti of the "Agrarian League" (Albanian: Lidhja Agrare ), Muharrem Bajraktari from the "Independent Fighting Group" (Albanian: Grupi Luftëtar i Pavarur ), Ihsan Toptani (independent), Gaqo Gogo,

2700-779: Was once the largest Balli Kombëtar base in Albania and still has strong ties with the name. The Tetovo-based football club KF Shkendija has a large support firm called the Ballistët . They are known in the media in North Macedonia for their use of hardline nationalistic rhetorics in football matches. The most notable Ballist leader in Macedonia was Xhem Hasa from Gostivar . A statue of him has been erected in Simnica , just south of Gostivar, by local Albanians. Rexhep Krasniqi Rexhep Krasniqi (24 April 1906 – 12 February 1999)

2754-429: Was one of the nine national representative bodies which were used by US State Department to create the Assembly of Captive European Nations (ACEN). With the demise of communism in Eastern Europe, the board of directors of the NCFA decided that its functions would no longer be needed, and it was disbanded in 1992. Recently (2013) CIA documents became public, which showed the CIA's sponsorship and deep involvement in

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2808-435: Was reached in March 1943. He also made another local agreement in August 1943 and was one of the initiators and supporters of the Mukje agreement. The communist-led LANÇ had demanded that Kosovo be ceded to Albania after the war. The LANÇ met with the Ballists in August 1943, agreeing upon the establishment of Greater Albania . The agreement was however short-lived. The agreement was the denounced by Albanian communists. In

2862-514: Was recaptured by the Fifth Partisan Brigade, the Germans with the assistance of the Ballist forces of Xhem Hasa launched an attack from Debar, defeating the partisans. The main centres of the Balli Kombëtar in these regions were Kosovska Mitrovica , Drenica and Tetovo . It was noted that the Balli Kombëtar in these regions were more aggressive than the Ballists of Albania. With the tables now turned in their favour many Ballists saw an opportunity to take their revenge upon their Serbian neighbours for

2916-445: Was sent to Kosovo (at that time part of the Albanian Kingdom ) and appointed principal of the first (newly established) Albanian language school in Pristina . There he became close to Xhafer Deva and Rexhep Mitrovica . Krasniqi became part of the leadership of the Second League of Prizren . He proceeded further in politics, becoming a member of the Albanian Parliament in 1943. He was appointed later as Minister of Education in

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