In Gajrak of Malishevë, Rifat Berisha, a military and political activist in Albania and Kosovo, was killed alongside his two brothers. He was born in Berishë of Drenica, in Gjakova, where he attended a religious school to become an imam, but never practiced this profession. In 1926, he moved to Albania and settled in the “Naim Frashëri” boarding school, a shelter for Kosovo refugees. There, he continued his education and became acquainted with Asim Vokshi, Fadil Hoxha, Emrush Miftari, and others. He pursued officer training and graduated as an aspirant in 1931. From 1931 to 1941, he served in the Albanian army, in the border guard units in Vlorë, Shkodër, and Sarandë. He was among the soldiers who opposed the fascist occupation of Albania in 1939. After the capitulation of Yugoslavia, he returned to Kosovo and was appointed sub-prefect of Gjilan in 1942. In the summer of 1943, he was transferred to Rahovec, where he served as sub-prefect. He collaborated with the Anti-fascist Movement and helped rescue the partisan unit “Emin Duraku,” commanded by Fadil Hoxha, from encirclement in the mountains of Poneshit on April 26, 1943. Due to his anti-fascist activities, he was arrested by the Italian carabinieri and sent to the prison in Shkodër from where he escaped. He participated in the Bujan Conference, where he was elected vice-chairman of the leadership of the National Liberation Council for Kosovo and the Dukagjin Highlands. After World War II, he was elected to important positions in regional administration and governance, including federal deputy in the Chamber of Nations and Nationalities. In 1947, he went to Tirana, where he met with some of the leaders of the Albanian state, explaining the dire situation in Kosovo. Upon returning from Albania, he began to be followed by security organs, first dismissed from all functions and later imprisoned. On May 14, 1944, he managed to escape from UDB agents (state security), but on May 17, he was surrounded in Gajrak of Malishevë, resisted, but was killed along with his two brothers. (In the photo: Rifat Berisha)
Text: Encyclopedic Dictionary of Kosovo – Vol. I , Academy of Sciences and Arts of Kosovo, Prishtina, 2018, page 167.
Photo: © Xhoxhi L., personal archive
Graphic processing: AHCF
