Twenty-five years since ten defenders were killed at Karpalak — no proper memorial yet
The site on the Tetovo–Skopje motorway is marked only by a single plaque listing the names of the dead.
Commemorations were held at the Karpalak site on the Tetovo–Skopje motorway to mark the 25th anniversary of the deaths of ten defenders who were travelling in a military convoy toward Tetovo. The convoy was attacked by KLA (Kosovo Liberation Army) forces, which struck the bus carrying the defenders with rocket launchers.
Despite a quarter of a century having passed since the attack, the place where the incident occurred still lacks a dignified memorial. The only marker at the site is a single plaque bearing the names of the fallen.
Names of the fallen
The plaque lists the ten men who died: Sasho Kitanoski, Marko Despotoski, Nane Naumoski, Ljube Grujoski, Branko Sekuloski, Darko Veljanoski, Goran Minoski, Pece Sekuloski, Vebi Rushidoski and Erdovan Shabanoski.
The attack occurred while the convoy was moving along the Tetovo–Skopje motorway; the defenders on board were from Prilep. The event was remembered at Karpalak with ceremonies and wreaths, but the absence of a permanent, larger monument was a repeated theme during the commemoration.
Relatives and those attending marked the day at the roadside plaque, while calls for a more substantial and dignified memorial at the actual site remain unanswered.
Photo: SDK.MK
