The Bombing of the Soviet Embassy and the Extrajudicial Execution of Sabiha Kasimati and 21 Other Intellectuals

Following the explosion of a small quantity of dynamite in the courtyard of the Soviet Embassy on February 19, the communist regime used the incident as a pretext to target members of the intellectual elite.

Sabiha Kasimati, together with 21 other intellectuals, was arrested and accused, without concrete evidence, of being “enemies of the people” and “terrorists.” Without an opportunity to mount a defense and without a regular trial, they were executed near the Beshiri Bridge on February 26, 1951, while the decision authorizing their execution was issued on February 27, 1951, one day after their deaths.

Following the fall of the communist regime in 1991, the victims’ families sought clarification of the circumstances surrounding the event and the identification of the execution site. The Plenum of the Supreme Court declared the convicted individuals innocent, ruling that Decision No. 64, dated February 27, 1951, of the Military Supreme Court was unlawful and unsupported by concrete evidence.

Following further investigations, the execution site was identified in 1993, and the victims’ remains were reburied with honors at the Martyrs’ Cemetery of the Nation.