The bombings continued for eleven weeks from 24 March 1999. Targets both in the capital Belgrade, other areas in Serbia and Montenegro were hit.
At this time, Serbia and Montenegro were the only remaining parts of Yugoslavia. The country disintegrated during the 1990s, triggering several civil wars.
In 1998, Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic sent military forces into Kosovo – which at the time was part of Serbia – to fight separatists who wanted independence.
Thousands were killed, and several hundred thousand were driven to flight. When peace talks did not lead, Nato chose to resort to military force.
NATO bombers attacked military targets, and then roads, power plants and other infrastructure. One of the most controversial attacks hit the state broadcaster RTS. The Chinese embassy in Belgrade was bombed by mistake.
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How many civilians were killed in the NATO attack is disputed. Estimates vary between 500 and 2,500. Finally, Milosevic capitulated, and he withdrew his forces from Kosovo.
Russia and China were strongly against NATO’s intervention in the conflict, and Russia has used NATO’s bombing of Serbia as part of its propaganda and criticism of the alliance.
