Meanwhile , Menduh Zavalani and the other leaders in the south were ready to attack Përmet . The revolutionary bands led by him , Spiro Bellkameni , Nexhip Bënja , Mehmet Pavari and Servet Frashëri had seized the town on 13 August . The Ottoman garrison surrender without fighting . The fighters disarmed the garrison and the next day , the Austro-Hungarian consul of Ioannina sent a letter to the Foreign Minister of Austro-Hungarian Empire Leopold Berchtold that " the people of Përmet had evicted the Ottoman kaymekam and had declared autonomy " . They organized a large meeting where Menduh Zavalani and Spiro Bellkameni gave a speech . An ultimatum with the signatures of all the town 's families was sent to the Ottoman government , demanding the autonomy of Albania . On 18 August 1912 , the Turkish government accepted the " Twelve Points " with slight changes . Eventually , the Albanian revolutionary bands ceased their fight . Four days later , the united armed bands of southeastern Albania started to gather at the Tekke of Turan and the Tekke of Melçan , a Bektashi shrine worshiped by both Muslims and Christians . On 25 August , more than 1 000 fighters entered triumphally the city of Korça . Spiro Bellkameni , Menduh Zavalani , Themistokli Gërmenji and Izet Zavalani with their fighters led the parade , then came Sali Butka with his men and other bands . People cheered while the music of the marching band " Banda e Lirisë " ( '' Freedom 's band '' ) followed their march . Menduh spoke in front of the people of Korça . In his speech he declared that " Until now the ' Committee ' ( Black Society for Salvation ) has worked secretly for the rights of Albania . But from now on we will work openly . ... And if the government does n't stand to its word , we will fight again to protect our motherland . " They were in the dark of the upcoming war . On 8 October 1912 the Kingdom of Montenegro declared war to the Ottoman Empire , marking the beginning of the First Balkan War . Within the next ten days Serbia , Bulgaria and Greece followed in declaring war and starting the military offensives that aimed the partitioning of the territories of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans . The events escalated fast . Menduh 's fellow combatant Spiro Bellkameni was killed on 14 October . Predicting a defeat of the Ottomans and concerned about the approaching Serbian army , the Albanian leaders in Skopje , delivered a communication to the representatives of the Great European Powers that the Albanian people were fighting to defend the liberty of Albania against any partition of the territory , and they were not assisting Turkey ( Ottoman Empire ) . The Montenegrin army had laid siege on Shkodër , while the Serbians had conquered Kosovo and were advancing fast in north Albania , committing on the way many massacres and lootings of the Albanian settlements . To get support for the Albanian issue , Ismail Qemali travelled to Istanbul , Bucharest and Vienna , where he met with the foreign minister Berchtold and the British and Italian ambassadors . The Habsburg foreign minister confirmed his support for an Albanian autonomy , rather than independence . But after considering the circumstances in the Balkans , while still in Trieste , Ismail Qemali sent the news he would come to proclaim the Independence of Albania , as the only remaining solution
many massacres
Massacres of Albanians in the Balkan Wars
Menduh Zavalani