Afrim Bunjaku (15 April 1973 – 24 September 2023) was a Kosovo Police sergeant who was killed in the Banjska attack in northern Kosovo. He was posthumously awarded the Hero of Kosovo order, the country's highest decoration.
Career Bunjaku graduated from the Kosovo Police Service School in 2001 and served at the police station in Vushtrri, where he was promoted to sergeant on 4 May 2007. By the time of his death he had served about 22 years in the force.
Death In the early hours of 24 September 2023, armed Kosovo Serbs blocked the road in the village of Banjska with trucks. When Kosovo Police arrived at the scene, gunfire broke out and Bunjaku, aged 50, was killed. Other officers were wounded. The attackers then withdrew to Banjska Monastery, where they were surrounded by police. Three of them were killed in the hours-long exchange of fire that followed.
Kosovo prosecutors said the group was led by Kosovo Serb businessman Milan Radoičić, who had earlier admitted leading the group but denied guilt when questioned by prosecutors in Belgrade. Prime Minister Albin Kurti described the attack as the work of terrorists supported by Serbia, while Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said it was carried out by "desperate local Serbs".
Honours and funeral On 25 September 2023, President Vjosa Osmani posthumously awarded Bunjaku the Hero of Kosovo order at a commemorative meeting in Pristina. He was buried the same day with state honours in the village of Samadrexhë, near Vushtrri. He was the father of three children.
Legacy On the first anniversary of the attack, in September 2024, the Kosovo government renamed the road leading from Ballaban to Banjska after him. In September 2026, a foundation stone was laid in Banjska for a memorial to him.
Legal proceedings On 24 April 2026, the Pristina Basic Court convicted three Kosovo Serbs of terrorism and serious acts against the constitutional order of Kosovo in connection with the attack. Two were sentenced to life imprisonment and one to 30 years. Serbia's government office for Kosovo called the verdict politically motivated. Most of the other suspects remain at liberty, most likely in Serbia.
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