Shaban Polluzha

Shaban Mustafë Kastrati (1871 – 21 February 1945), known as Shaban Polluzha, was a Kosovo Albanian military leader. His allegiances frequently changed, with him at first aligning with the Axis forces and then aligning with the Allied forces, and later on was known for leading the Drenica uprising against the Yugoslav Forces in 1945. Until 1941, he served in the Royal Albanian gendarmerie and as a commander of the Vulnetari militia, and then served as a member of the Partisan party. He was briefly a member of the Balli Kombëtar. He was designated a National Hero of Kosovo. Early life Shaban was born in Polluzha, in the Drenica region (now central Kosovo). He came from a middle-class family and he was not educated, but as a young man he became involved in political life due to the circumstances and injustices of the occupying regimes.

World War I and II He fought against the Bulgarians and Austrians during the First World War; afterwards he fought for the Kaçak movement against the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.

Shaban Polluzha was one of the most famous commanders of the Drenica area during the Second World War. During the war, he was also the commander of a part of the front in Montenegro, Kolašin and Sandžak, where he distinguished himself for organization and strategy. He was a member of the Islihat Council (peace court) and, on the proposal of Miftar Bajraktari, he was appointed chairman of the Islihat in Drenica.

In 1941, Shaban Polluzha and his family were imprisoned in Peje because he opposed cooperating with the Italians. and during the war he maintained close ties with the anti-fascist National Liberation Movement (Albania) and Yugoslav Partisans, believing their promise that Kosovo would be given self-determination. Around December 1944, attempts were made to forcefully mobilize Kosovo Albanians into the Yugoslav Army. His force of roughly 8,000 men was then attacked by Yugoslav Partisan units in January 1945. later sparked post-WWII controversy and criticism.