The Organization for the Protection of the People's Struggle ( el, Οργάνωση Περιφρούρησης Λαϊκού Αγώνα, abbreviated ΟΠΛΑ – OPLA, an acronym meaning "weapons" in Greek) was a special division of the

Communist Party of Greece The Communist Party of Greece ( el, Κομμουνιστικό Κόμμα Ελλάδας, ''Kommounistikó Kómma Elládas'', KKE) is a political party in Greece. Founded in 1918 as the Socialist Labour Party of Greece and adopted its curre ...

(KKE) during the Axis Occupation of Greece in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Officially, it was semi-autonomous part of the broader National Liberation Front (EAM). In fact, it was not controlled by EAM, but directly by the Politburo of the KKE. It can be described as a

paramilitary A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...

security force. It operated in the cities, and its purpose was the self-defense of the members of the National Liberation Front and its affiliated organizations from the German occupation authorities and the collaborationist government and its organs, the Police, the

Gendarmerie Wrong info! --> A gendarmerie () is a military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to " men-at-arms" (literally, ...

(especially its notorious branch named as Special Security, expertised at the anti-communistic struggle) and the

Security Battalions The Security Battalions ( el, Τάγματα Ασφαλείας, Tagmata Asfaleias, derisively known as ''Germanotsoliades'' (Γερμανοτσολιάδες) or ''Tagmatasfalites'' (Ταγματασφαλίτες)) were Greek collaborationist m ...

. It proved to be very successful in

assassinating Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have a ...

commanders of the Security Battalions and other armed governmental forces. However, it also became involved in political assassinations of political opponents of the KKE on both ends of the political spectrum, such as

Trotskyites Trotskyism is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Ukrainian-Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky and some other members of the Left Opposition and Fourth International. Trotsky self-identified as an orthodox Marxist, a ...

and Archeio-Marxists. As a result, the activities of the OPLA are a subject of heated debate even today. In April 1944 it was renamed as

National Civil Guard The National Civil Guard ( el, Εθνική Πολιτοφυλακή, ''Ethniki Politophylaki'') was the security force of the Political Committee of National Liberation (PEEA), the government that the National Liberation Front (EAM) had establish ...

, though members of OPLA continued operations. The organization was also active during the

December 1944 events December is the twelfth and final month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is also the last of seven months to have a length of 31 days. December got its name from the Latin word ''decem'' (meaning ten) because it was or ...

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...

. Hundreds of executions of anti-communists or collaborators took place in the vicinity of the ULEN refineries. Among its victims was also the well-known actress

Eleni Papadaki Eleni Papadaki (Greek: Ελένη Παπαδάκη, 4 November 1903 – 22 December 1944) was a celebrated Greek stage actress who was murdered during the Dekemvriana events, accused for political reasons by the communists, of having collaborate ...

. During the subsequent

Greek Civil War The Greek Civil War ( el, ο Eμφύλιος �όλεμος}, ''o Emfýlios'' 'Pólemos'' "the Civil War") took place from 1946 to 1949. It was mainly fought against the established Kingdom of Greece, which was supported by the United Kingdom and ...

, it was renamed as People's Civil Guard. It acted especially in

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

and Northern Greece in 1946–1947 (in these regions the name of the organization was Close Self-Defense, Στενή Αυτοάμυνα in Greek). One of its more notable later actions was the assassination of Justice Minister Christos Ladas (who had signed the execution of hundreds of communists) in Athens on 1 May 1948, by OPLA and KKE member Efstratios (Stratos) Moutsogiannis. In Macedonia and Epirus during the Civil War, the OPLA assassinated many high-ranking officers of the Greek Gendarmerie. During the

, OPLA turned the monastery of St. George in Feneos into a

concentration camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...

and killing ground for those they deemed "reactionaries". The concentration camp was well-organized for mass killings, with 6-7 resident killers that worked round the clock in busy times. It is believed that hundreds were killed.

References

External links

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Urban guerrilla in Thessaloniki
Defunct communist militant groups Greece in World War II Greek Civil War National Liberation Front (Greece) 1940s in Greek politics 1943 establishments in Greece Defunct communist parties in Greece Military wings of communist parties Communist repression Crime in Greece Political repression in Greece Secret police Urban guerrilla warfare Left-wing militant groups in Greece {{Greece-hist-stub