In the early months of 1999, the conflict in Kosovo intensified, leading to widespread violence and ethnic tensions between the Kosovo Albanian population and Serb forces. Izbica, a village in the municipality of Malisheva, was engulfed in violence as the conflict escalated. On March 28, Serbian military and paramilitary forces launched an assault on the village, reportedly rounding up suspected members of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and executing them alongside non-combatant civilians. Eyewitness testimonies revealed horrors as families were separated, homes were burned, and people were killed in cold blood.

The events in Izbica occurred within the backdrop of a sustained military campaign by Serbian forces, directed by the government under Slobodan Milošević, to suppress the KLA and maintain Serbian control over Kosovo. This brutal crackdown aimed not only to target combatants but also to instill fear within the Albanian civilian population, pushing them to flee or submit to Serbian authority. International media began to report on the increasing atrocities, shocking the global community as photographs and testimonials emerged from survivors.

The massacre was part of a broader series of human rights violations that would eventually lead to NATO's military intervention in Kosovo, marking a significant turning point in the conflict. By the end of the Kosovo War, thousands of Albanian civilians would have suffered similar fates at the hands of Serbian forces, leading to an urgent call for justice and accountability in the region. The events in Izbica stand as a grim reminder of the war's brutality and the importance of human rights protections in conflict zones.