Escalation
During the one month-long calm period, resulting from the offensive of the Macedonian security forces, the government launched roundtable discussions with Macedonian and Albanian political parties on legislative reforms. However this did not end the violence. On 28 April 2001, eight Macedonian police officers were killed in an NLA ambush, and their bodies were mutilated. Reports concluded that the attackers must have been informed by radio about the route of the police vehicle.
Macedonian sources disclosed that the ambush was executed by Ismail Shinasi (alias Komandant Hoxha), Ceka Ilaz (alias Komandant Qori) and Ceka Bilal (alias Komandant Brada) - all three of them and most of their people were born in Kosovo and were veteran members of the Kosovo Liberation Army. Ceka Bilal was a member of the Kosovo Intelligence Agency and was one of the main organizers for weapons smuggling in Kosovo.
In reference to the attack, Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski stated:
"We are fighting terrorists, not rebels, and we have exercised the utmost restraint in tackling them".
The murder of the 8 Macedonian soldiers and police officers led to riots in Skopje, Bitola and Veles in which ethnic Macedonians attacked Albanian-owned businesses and shops. At least 10 Albanian shops in the city of Bitola were destroyed, and a dozens of buildings were damaged.
In order to suppress the riots, the Macedonian government imposed a curfew in Bitola, and Premier Georgievski announced that his cabinet considered declaring a state of war in order to have greater flexibility in fighting the NLA insurgents. According to the Macedonian Constitution a state of war would give enhanced powers to the President and the army, and allow for presidential rule by decree, fewer restraints on the army, the banning of demonstrations, a nation-wide curfew, and sealing the country's borders.
However during the entire conflict, the United States urged Macedonia not to declare a state of war in its fight against the NLA.
Read more about this topic: Insurgency In The Republic Of Macedonia