A Battle for Remembrance? Narrating the Battle of Košare/Koshare in Belgrade- and Pristina-Based Media

Abstract

Abstract This article examines the memory of the Battle of Košare/Koshare fought between the Yugoslav Army and Kosovo Albanian forces during the NATO intervention of 1999. The analysis is based on articles from the daily press published in Belgrade and Pristina on the anniversaries of the battle during the last two decades. The author focuses on how the narratives of the same event have been generated in the respective media, as well as their main characteristics and functions. Finally, she addresses the tensions among different memory actors who engaged in reshaping the narratives of the battle, generating both exclusive and intersectional traits in the diverging narratives of the Battle of Košare/Koshare. Thereby she sheds a comparative light on commemorative practices and memory politics of Kosovo and Serbia, while also bringing new insights into the transitional justice process.