Xheladin Kurbaliu

Xheladin Kurbaliu, was an Albanian Communist, later turned Fascist and Ballist, who led forces as a commander during the Insurgency in Karadak in World War II. He is best known for his role in the Battle of the Lojane Mine and the First Battle of Preševo.

Life

Xheladin Miftari, better known as Xheladin Kurbaliu, was born in 1907, in the village of Kurbalija in the Karadak region of Preševo. After World War I, due to economic hardships, his family moved to Preševo, where he worked in the chrome mine in the village of Lojane, Kumanovo.

Following the April War and the subsequent occupation of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1941 by Axis forces and the division of occupation zones, Preševo fell under the rule of fascist Bulgaria. This marked the beginning of his conflict with the political line of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia.