Njazi Azemi

Nijazi Azemi (16 June 1970 – 26 March 2001) was an Albanian soldier of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and later Liberation Army of Preševo, Medveđa and Bujanovac (UÇPMB), best known for his support in the Kosovo war. During the war, he had the nickname "Komandant Mjekrra" ("Commander Beard" in English). He was part of Brigade 115 "Karadaku", which was later renamed Brigade 115 "Njazi Azemi" following his death.
Nijazi Azemi was born on 16 June 1970 in the Mogilla village of Vitina. His father, Ramush was the nephew of Fazli Tërpeza, a warrior who died in 1945 in the battle of Sllakovc against the Yugoslav troops. During his youth, Azemi was an excellent student, but he did not continue his education due to conditions at the time. Later he began to deal with the particular construction with wood carving, shaping the profession quickly. In the art of wood carving, Njazi had become a true sculptor. In this art he expressed his spirit of a freedom-loving patriot.
Azemi had taken part in various demonstrations organised by Albanians in Western cities. On 29 March 1989, in another protest against the Serbian government in Kosovo, Azemi was wounded following a brawl with Serbian police. It took him ten days to recover from the wounds in the hospital of Pristina under the overseeing of Dr. Zenet Ujkani. Then he continued is recover in various hospitals of Ljubljana, after he went there with the help of "Migjeni" association. In the autumn, Azemi began training with Kosovo Liberation Army.