Greece Marks WWII Entry Anniversary With Military Parade

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Greek subject officers clasp Greek flags during a subject parade astatine the bluish larboard metropolis of Thessaloniki, Greece, connected Oct. 28, 2021 .The parade is held to observe Greece's refusal to align itself with fascist Italy successful 1940 and alternatively combat a overmuch stronger opponent, a determination which dragged it into World War II and yet led to a brutal concern by Nazi Germany. (Giannis Papanikos/AP Photo)

THESSALONIKI, Greece—Fighter jets flew implicit the bluish Greek metropolis of Thessaloniki connected Thursday arsenic parachutists landed and troops marched successful the city’s halfway to people a nationalist vacation commemorating Greece’s defiance of Fascist Italy that forced it to participate World War II.

Greece’s Oct. 28 nationalist holiday, known arsenic Ochi Day, oregon No Day, marks the time successful 1940 erstwhile Athens rejected a pre-dawn Italian ultimatum to let its forces to participate Greek territory and instrumentality power of parts of it, arsenic a warrant for Greece’s neutrality.

Italian troops invaded hours later, prompting Greece’s introduction into the war, successful which outnumbered and outgunned Greek forces successfully repulsed the Italians lone to beryllium overwhelmed months aboriginal by a abstracted German invasion.

“The anniversary of ‘No’ is simply a time of grant and pridefulness for our nation,” President Katerina Sakellaropoulou said, adding that the country’s actions successful 1940 “remind america of everything we tin execute erstwhile we are united.”

Last year’s parades were cancelled arsenic the state grappled with the coronavirus pandemic. This year, astir were allowed to spell ahead, though Thessaloniki’s subject parade was somewhat pared down, with lone military, occurrence service, and information forces parading without the information of galore of the civic groups and associations that traditionally instrumentality part. Participants and spectators alike were asked to deterioration masks.

But respective municipalities and regions crossed bluish Greece cancelled parades by schoolchildren.

Epoch Times unit contributed to this report.