History

Kosovo War in Numbers — 1998–1999

During the Kosovo War of 1998–1999, Serbian and Yugoslav military, police and paramilitary forces carried out killings, forced expulsions and other crimes across Kosovo. The predominantly Kosovo Albanian population bore the overwhelming human cost. This page presents figures documented by Prof. Dr. Jusuf Osmani, together with wider documented evidence of mass displacement.

January 1998 – 12 June 1999

Human losses documented during Serbia’s campaign in Kosovo

8,162

People recorded as killed

1,137

People recorded as still missing

2,208

People recorded as fallen martyrs

11,507

People recorded across the killed, missing and martyr categories

The 11,507 figure combines three distinct source categories and is not a death toll.

Behind these figures were families and communities across Kosovo affected by killings, disappearances, destruction and forced expulsion. Prof. Dr. Jusuf Osmani’s volumes document crimes attributed to Serbian and Yugoslav military, police and paramilitary forces, with Kosovo Albanians forming the population most extensively targeted and displaced during the campaign.

Wider documented context

Mass expulsion and displacement of Kosovo Albanians

OSCE/ODIHR, UNHCR and Human Rights Watch document a campaign of forced expulsion carried out by Serbian and Yugoslav forces, alongside extensive internal displacement across Kosovo in 1999. These figures are separate from Jusuf Osmani’s register.

  • 862,979Kosovo Albanians expelled from Kosovo
  • Several hundred thousandmore internally displaced
  • More than 80%of Kosovo’s total population displaced from their homes
  • About 90%of Kosovo Albanians displaced

Municipal records

Explore municipal records

Prof. Dr. Jusuf Osmani’s municipal registers document how human losses extended across communities throughout Kosovo. Select a municipality to explore the figures recorded for its historical municipal scope.

Municipality map

Select a municipality on the map or from the list.

Comparison

Municipal figures

Compare

Sources

Sources for this page

The principal statistical source on this page is Prof. Dr. Jusuf Osmani’s Serb Government’s Crimes in Kosova 1998–1999. The books document killings, disappearances and other crimes attributed in the source to Serbian and Yugoslav military, police and paramilitary forces. Wider displacement figures are cited separately from OSCE/ODIHR, UNHCR and Human Rights Watch.

Methodology & sources