{"id":11981,"date":"2025-12-19T14:32:17","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T13:32:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/?p=11981"},"modified":"2025-12-25T15:23:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-25T14:23:11","slug":"amet-ametovic-was-awarded-the-medal-of-karadjordjes-star-but-not-for-heroics-in-the-battle-of-kumanovo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/2025\/12\/19\/amet-ametovic-was-awarded-the-medal-of-karadjordjes-star-but-not-for-heroics-in-the-battle-of-kumanovo\/","title":{"rendered":"Amet Ametovi\u0107 Was Awarded the Medal of Karadjordje\u2019s Star \u2014 but Not for Heroics in the Battle of Kumanovo"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n

Original article<\/em><\/a> (in Serbian) was published on 17\/12\/2025; Author: Teodora Koledin<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The editorial team of FakeNews Traga\u010drecently received a tip from a reader regarding media claims that Ahmed Ademovi\u0107 <\/strong>(also referred to in sources as Amed Amedovi\u0107<\/strong>, and remembered by his descendants as Amet Ametovi\u0107<\/strong>) was a trumpet player from Leskovac whose accomplishment \u201cdecided the Battle of Kumanovo\u201d in 1912, and that he was therefore awarded the Medal of Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star with Swords. In the available archival material, our editorial team found evidence that Amet Ametovi\u0107 received this decoration for his contribution to the war against Austro-Hungary in 1914\u20131915, and not for the alleged accomplishment<\/em> at the Battle of Kumanovo. And although the press of the time reported on the Battle of Kumanovo, and later on Amet Ametovi\u0107 as well, none of the sources we accessed describe the event to which today\u2019s media refer.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We also sought data and information about this hero at the National Museum and the Historical Archives in Leskovac, as well as at the Military Archives of Serbia, but all three institutions replied that there is simply no additional information about Amet Ametovi\u0107 or his alleged accomplishment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What kind of accomplishment is it?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

According to media reports, social media users and certain individuals, Amet Ametovi\u0107 played one of the key roles in the Battle of Kumanovo during the First Balkan War. The story \u2013\u00a0albeit with some variations \u2013\u00a0 goes as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Military trumpeter Amet Ametovi\u0107, in the heat of the Battle of Kumanovo, sneaked among Turkish soldiers and played the signal for retreat. Although confused, the Turkish troops began to withdraw. Immediately afterward, Ametovi\u0107 played the signal for a charge to the Serbian army, after which the Turks were defeated. It was precisely for this accomplishment that Amet was awarded the Medal of Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star with Swords.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Similar versions of the same story have been published on the portals Politika<\/a><\/em>, Telegraf<\/a><\/em>, Blic<\/a><\/em>, Espreso<\/a><\/em>, Srbija Danas<\/a><\/em>, Kurir<\/a><\/em>, Alo<\/a><\/em>, Mondo<\/a><\/em>, Kompas.info<\/a><\/em>, Novosti<\/a><\/em>, Vaseljenska<\/a><\/em>, Jugpress<\/a><\/em>, Televizija Leskovac<\/a><\/em>, Glas javnosti<\/a><\/em>, Nezavisne novine<\/a><\/em>, Serbian Times<\/a><\/em>, Iskra<\/a><\/em>, Red<\/a><\/em>, and Trebinje Live<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This sequence of events is also described in the book <\/a>The Road to Jericho<\/em> by the writer Sa\u0161a Stojanovi\u0107. \u201cAhmed Ademovi\u0107\u201d allegedly deceived the Turkish army and thus secured victory for the Serbian forces, after which he received the Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star from the king. According to the approximate chronology presented in Stojanovi\u0107\u2019s book, he received the medal immediately after the end of the First Balkan War and before the beginning of the Second Balkan War.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 20th-century press on Amet Ametovi\u0107 \u2013 why was he decorated?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In October 1936, the newspaper Vreme<\/em> <\/a>published an interview with \u201cAmed Amedovi\u0107\u201d under the headline: \u201cA Gypsy who was awarded the Medal of Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star with Swords for merits on the battlefield receives a monthly state allowance of one hundred dinars.\u201d<\/em> We quote the part of the interview crucial to our story:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Journalist:<\/strong> \u201cAt which position did you earn the Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amet:<\/strong> \u201cAt the position \u2018Captain\u2019s Fountain\u2019 near Krupanj. My commander was Captain \u010cu\u010dakovi\u0107, and the platoon leader was Second Lieutenant Baji\u0107.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Journalist:<\/strong> \u201cWhat accomplishment did you perform?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amet:<\/strong> \u201cI fought for the King and the Fatherland. We all fought bravely\u2026 However, around June 1915, the commander gathered the company and read out: \u2018Ahmed Amedovi\u0107 has been awarded the Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star,\u2019 and they gave me, here, this decoration\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The printed newspaper Pravda<\/em> <\/a>also wrote about Ametovi\u0107, describing him as \u201cthe only Gypsy holder of the Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star living in Leskovac.\u201d In a 1938 article, the paper explained that \u201cafter the battle at Captain\u2019s Fountain, above Krupanj, in 1914, Amet was awarded the highest military decoration \u2013 the Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star with Swords.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus, Amet himself spoke to the media in the postwar period, but he did not mention the accomplishment attributed to him by today\u2019s media, nor did he say that he received Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star after the Battle of Kumanovo. We note that the Battle of Kumanovo was fought during the First Balkan War, on October 23 and 24, 1912. Accordingly, the claims by some media outlets that he received the decoration \u201cprecisely\u201d for an accomplishment at Kumanovo do not hold up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Traga\u010d <\/em>also obtained a key document published in the Official Military Gazette<\/em> on June 15, 1915, in Kragujevac, by which Amet Ametovi\u0107 was awarded the Medal of Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star with Swords \u2013 clearly refuting the disputed claim. The document states that the decoration was awarded \u201cfor proven personal bravery and self-sacrifice on the battlefield in the war against Austro-Hungary in 1914-1915\u201d (1<\/a>, 2<\/a>, 3<\/a>). In short, it has nothing to do with the Battle of Kumanovo, which took place earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, the Medal of Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star with Swords was introduced by decree <\/a>in the Official Military Gazette<\/em> only at the end of May 1915, as also noted in a Facebook post<\/a> on the profile of Radenko Kuzmanovi\u0107, to which a reader drew our attention. The post also published an apparently authentic file on Amet Ametovi\u0107 from the Archives of Yugoslavia, confirming that he was not decorated for an accomplishment at the Battle of Kumanovo, but for other acts. We attempted to contact the Archives of Yugoslavia to confirm this information, but did not receive a response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ahmed Ademovi\u0107, Amed Amedovi\u0107, or Amet Ametovi\u0107?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As noted at the beginning of this article, Amet Ametovi\u0107 is referred to in some sources as Amed Amedovi\u0107 and Ahmed Ademovi\u0107. In recent years, the name Ahmed Ademovi\u0107 has been most commonly used in the media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Based on our extensive research, we conclude that Ahmed Ademovi\u0107, Amet Ametovi\u0107, and Amed Amedovi\u0107 are almost certainly the same person. In available official military documents, only the name Amet Ametovi\u0107 appears. The journalist from Vreme<\/em>, in the interview cited above, addresses him as Amed Amedovi\u0107, and then, \u201cseveral days later<\/a>,\u201d in a new article in Vreme<\/em> about the same man, refers to him as Amet Ametovi\u0107. Ahmed Ademovi\u0107 appears only in more recent sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Descendants <\/a>of Amet Ametovi\u0107 have previously stated that they are \u201cfighting to correct a major mistake by historians \u2013 because their ancestor was named Amet Ametovi\u0107, not Ahmed Amedovi\u0107 as written in Wikipedia and history textbooks.\u201d The Vreme<\/em> article states that \u201cAmed Amedovi\u0107\u201d lived in the Leskovac suburb of Podvorce (Zeka Buljuba\u0161a Street, No. 53), as does \u201cAhmed Ademovi\u0107\u201d according to newer sources<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the credibility of Ametovi\u0107\u2019s alleged accomplishment at the Battle of Kumanovo<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Without any intention of diminishing Ametovi\u0107\u2019s heroism during the battles of the early 20th century, it should nevertheless be noted that in the available sources, we found no information about the event attributed to him by the media and on social networks, nor any confirmation that he actually participated in the Battle of Kumanovo. The Balkan Wars were extensively reported on at the time, and in the contemporary press, we found articles attributing significant accomplishments to other soldiers and officers, but not to Ametovi\u0107. For example, the newspaper Illustrated War Chronicle<\/em> wrote <\/a>about officer Aca Zdravkovi\u0107, who lost his life in the battle after, once company commanders had been killed, he \u201cleapt\u201d among the troops from his position as a divisional adjutant and led them forward. The final sentence of that article reads:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201cIn the history of the Battle of Kumanovo, the late Aca will be recorded among the foremost. The main credit for the victory at Kumanovo belongs to heroes such as Aca Zdravkovi\u0107. Glory to Aca Zdravkovi\u0107!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Although individual acts of heroism were discussed, we found no source confirming that Amet Ametovi\u0107 truly sneaked among the Turkish army during this clash and gave them the signal for retreat (and the Serbian army the signal for a charge). Consequently, other claims stemming from this event are also of questionable credibility \u2013 for example, that this very move by Amet was \u201cone of the key factors in the Serbian victory.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the National Museum in Leskovac, we received information that they \u201cdo not possess any material on Amet Ametovi\u0107 except for his photograph,\u201d and that \u201cthe medal has been lost.\u201d They note that on Amet\u2019s tombstone, erected by members of the Association of Holders of the Kara\u0111or\u0111e\u2019s Star, there is an inscription stating that he was a hero of the \u201cKumanovo\u201d battle, said a curator at the Leskovac museum, without further explanation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the search for additional sources on Amet Ametovi\u0107, we also contacted the Historical Archives in Leskovac, but as stated in their reply, their institution \u201cdoes not possess the requested data.\u201d FakeNews Tracker received the same response from the Military Archives.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Original article (in Serbian) was published on 17\/12\/2025; Author: Teodora Koledin The editorial team of FakeNews Traga\u010drecently received a tip from a reader regarding media claims that Ahmed Ademovi\u0107 (also referred to in sources as Amed Amedovi\u0107, and remembered by his descendants as Amet Ametovi\u0107) was a trumpet player from Leskovac whose accomplishment \u201cdecided the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":11982,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[316],"tags":[689,21,28],"class_list":["post-11981","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fact-checks","tag-balkan-wars","tag-history","tag-serbia"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11981","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11981"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11981\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11983,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11981\/revisions\/11983"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11982"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11981"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11981"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11981"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}