The celebration began early in the morning with a voluntary Mass in honor of the Virgin of the Pillar, the patron saint of Zaragoza, the city from which a large part of the contingent came. It was followed by a procession and a floral offering that concluded with an Aragonese jota in the heart of the Balkans, coinciding with the feast of the Pillar.
At 12:00 noon, the military ceremony began, attended by Italian General Vicenzo Santo, commander of Task Force West, as well as representatives of other international units, municipal authorities from Istok and members of the area’s ethnic minorities.
During the event, Colonel Gabriel Pruñonosa Gil highlighted the significance of Hispanic Day and the good relations with the Argentine contingent. He also remembered a Peruvian soldier who had died in Afghanistan months earlier and congratulated the Spanish soldiers on their work in Kosovo.
The ceremony concluded with a tribute to those who had given their lives for Spain and a parade by the units, both on foot and in military vehicles, before the guests.
The Spanish KSPFOR XVI Group, led by Colonel Luis Manuel López González, consisted of units from the Castillejos Brigade and ALOG-41, both based in Zaragoza. Its mission, scheduled to continue until mid-December, sought to contribute to Kosovo’s security and stability.
The Virgin of the Pillar, an Aragonese jota and the military parade took center stage that October 12, far from Zaragoza. This is how we reported it in Aragón Digital 20 years ago, in the original story about the celebration of Hispanic Day by the Aragonese soldiers stationed in Kosovo.
