- Date of the event
- Place
- Prishtina
- Evidence status
- Evidence status: Documented. Supported by contemporaneous documents, institutional reports or independent studies that corroborate one another.
By Decision No. 263 of 25 October 1998, the OSCE Permanent Council authorised deployment of the Kosovo Verification Mission (KVM), with up to 2,000 unarmed verifiers. William Walker was appointed head of mission; the Prishtina headquarters opened on 11 November 1998.
The ICTY found the mission never reached its intended strength: at withdrawal it had about 1,300 international staff [1]. Its Human Rights Division became operational during December 1998 and January 1999 [2] [3].
Historical context
1998
The attacks in Drenica in February and March 1998 turned a limited insurgency into open war. By October, hundreds of thousands of people had been displaced and international diplomacy was directly engaged.
Read the chapter “1998: from Drenica to open war”Sources
- [1]Tribunali Penal Ndërkombëtar për ish-Jugosllavinë (ICTY). Prosecutor v. Milutinović et al., Judgement, Volume 1 of 4. 2009-02-26. IT-05-87-T. https://www.icty.org/x/cases/milutinovic/tjug/en/jud090226-e1of4.pdf. Accessed 2026-09-16. — paras 337–343, 402
- [2]OSBE — Zyra për Institucione Demokratike dhe të Drejta të Njeriut (ODIHR). Kosovo/Kosova: As Seen, As Told: An analysis of the human rights findings of the OSCE Kosovo Verification Mission, October 1998 to June 1999. 1999. https://www.osce.org/files/f/documents/d/d/17772.pdf. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- [3]Këshilli i Përhershëm i OSBE-së (mbledhja plenare e 193-të). OSCE Permanent Council Decision No. 263: Establishment of the Kosovo Verification Mission. 1998-10-25. PC.DEC/263. https://www.osce.org/pc/20595. Accessed 2026-09-16.