 Ali Ahmeti organized the NLA from former KLA fighters from Kosovo and Macedonia; Albanian insurgents from Preševo, Medveđa and Bujanovac in Serbia; young Albanian radicals; nationalists from Macedonia; and foreign mercenaries.The acronym was the same as the KLA's in Albanian.The NLA was founded in the fall of 1999 and initially led by former KLA Commander Ali Ahmeti, nephew of one of the founders of the KLA.