Operation Animals facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Operation Animals |
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 Napoleon Zervas |
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Operation Animals was a secret mission during World War II. It was carried out by the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) with help from Greek resistance groups like ELAS, Zeus, EDES, and PAO. The United States Army Air Force also helped. This operation happened between June 21 and July 11, 1943. Its main goal was to trick the Axis Powers (Germany and Italy) into thinking the Allies would invade Greece. In reality, the Allies planned to invade Sicily. The mission worked, but many Greek civilians suffered because of harsh responses from the Axis forces. Also, British involvement caused more problems between the different Greek resistance groups.
Why Operation Animals Happened
Greece Under Occupation
In October 1940, Italy attacked Greece. Italy expected an easy win, but the Greeks fought back and pushed them into Albania. Germany had to step in to help its ally. German forces were stronger and better equipped. They defeated the small Greek army defending the border. This led to the end of the Battle of Greece.
Greece was then taken over by Germany, Italy, and Bulgaria. This was called the Triple Occupation. Bulgaria even took over some parts of Greece directly. The first Greek resistance group, Eleutheria (Liberty), formed in May 1941. It included people from different political views. But it didn't last long. Soon, the communist-led Greek People's Liberation Army (ELAS) became the main resistance group. Other groups, like National Republican Greek League (EDES), were smaller.
Planning the Deception
In June 1943, a British officer named Brigadier Eddie Myers helped Greek resistance groups agree to work together. ELAS, EDES, and another group called EKKA joined under one command. This command included Myers and the Greek leaders. They also agreed to follow the British Middle East Command. This agreement was important for Operation Animals.
Operation Animals was part of a bigger plan called Operation Barclay. The goal of Barclay was to make the Axis believe the Allies would invade southern Europe through Greece. But the real target was Sicily.
Choosing the Next Target
After winning battles in North Africa, the Allies needed to decide where to attack next. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill wanted to attack Europe's "soft underbelly." There were two main choices:
- Sicily: Taking Sicily would open the Mediterranean Sea for Allied ships. It would also allow an invasion of Italy.
- Greece and the Balkans: Attacking here could trap German forces between the Allies and the Soviets.
At a meeting in January 1943, the Allies chose Sicily. This invasion was called Operation Husky. They planned to attack by July. But Allied leaders worried that Sicily was too obvious a choice. They thought Germany would expect it.
Tricking the Germans
Adolf Hitler was worried about an invasion in the Balkans. This area provided Germany with important raw materials like copper and oil. The Allies knew this. So, they launched Operation Barclay to play on Hitler's fears. They wanted to make him think the Balkans were the target. This would keep Sicily less protected.
To make the deception believable, the Allies set up a fake army headquarters in Cairo, Egypt. They called it the Twelfth Army. They pretended it had twelve divisions. They even held military exercises in Syria using fake tanks. They hired Greek interpreters and collected Greek maps and money. They sent fake radio messages about troop movements from the fake headquarters. Meanwhile, the real command center for the Sicily invasion used land-lines to avoid radio traffic.
Sabotage Before the Main Operation
On May 29, Myers learned that Sicily would be invaded in July. He was ordered to start Operation Animals in Greece. This meant a campaign of sabotage. It would begin on June 21 and last until July 14. Myers quickly contacted the Greek resistance leaders, and ELAS agreed to help.
The Gorgopotamos bridge, which had been destroyed before, was to be blown up again. Myers wanted to destroy the Asopos bridge. But the ELAS commander, Stefanos Sarafis, thought it was too risky. He suggested the Kournovo tunnel instead. Myers agreed and gave ELAS explosives.
On June 1, an ELAS team blew up the Kournovo tunnel. A train full of ammunition and Italian soldiers was passing through. Many Italian and German soldiers were killed or injured. Greek prisoners of war also died. The tunnel was not badly damaged, and the Germans fixed it quickly. In response, the Italian army killed 106 prisoners of war.
On June 20, British officers blew up the Asopos bridge. Hitler was very unhappy about this. The damage to the bridge cut off the railroad between northern and southern Greece until late August. This set the stage for Operation Animals.
Operation Animals in Action
Attacks on Transport and Communications
On the night of June 20, 1943, five bridges were blown up along the Katerini–Lamia railroad. This destroyed about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) of tracks. Near Litochoro, an ELAS unit destroyed a bridge and cut telephone lines. Another group blew up a bridge near Petrana.
The Germans responded by sending more soldiers and arresting hundreds of civilians. They forced these civilians to clear mines from the railroads. This made it harder for the resistance to plant more explosives.
The Sarantaporo Ambush
In the early morning of June 21, about 100 ELAS fighters ambushed a German column. This happened in the narrow Sarantaporo pass. The fight lasted eight hours. Eleven Germans were killed, 97 surrendered, and five escaped. The Sarantaporo bridge and 64 German cars and trucks were destroyed. The captured German soldiers were killed a few days later.
German reports from June 22–23 described many attacks on Greek phone lines and transport networks. They said these attacks were meant to cut off southern Greece.
Air Raids and More Sabotage
On the morning of June 24, 20 American planes bombed the Thermi airfield. Eight German soldiers were killed, and 70 were injured. The runways and 70 percent of the airfield's buildings were destroyed. Ten German aircraft were destroyed, and 15 more were damaged. The Zeus resistance group provided information about the airfield.
On June 25, German guards stopped an attack on the Bralos bridge. They later defused an explosive device. On the night of June 28, more explosives were set off along the Leptokarya–Litochoro railroad line, causing slight damage. The next day, resistance fighters killed a German secret police commander near Thessaloniki. On June 27, Allied air raids on the Eleusina and Kalamaki airfields killed 16 Germans and 32 Greeks. Twelve planes were destroyed.
German Responses and Civilian Suffering
On July 1, a German division and two Italian regiments started an anti-resistance operation near Servia. This turned into a harsh punishment mission. It lasted until July 5. Sixteen villages were burned, 92 civilians were killed, and many cattle were stolen. After the German division left, the area was declared a "dead zone." It was put under the control of Greek groups who worked with the Germans.
On July 2, 50 prisoners of war were killed in response to the secret police commander's death. Later that day, resistance fighters clashed with a German patrol. On July 3, resistance fighters shot at a German car and blew up railroad tracks outside Litochoro.
On the night of July 4, the Leptokarya–Litochoro railroad was sabotaged again. An ammunition train derailed, and 10 Germans were injured in the explosion. A German outpost was also attacked. German forces responded by killing 10 prisoners of war in Thessaloniki and destroying part of Litochoro.
On the night of July 11, a bridge was blown up 25 kilometers (15.5 miles) northwest of Lamia as a German column passed through. Twenty-five wagons of ammunition were destroyed. The next day, Germans killed 13 people blamed for the bombing. On July 11, Myers ordered the operation to stop because the Allied landings in Sicily had begun.
What Happened Next
Success and Suffering
Operation Animals successfully tricked Hitler. He believed that Sardinia and the Peloponnese in Greece were more likely targets than Sicily. Even after the Sicily landing, German commanders in Greece still expected another Allied landing there for a short time.
However, the Greek people suffered greatly from German reprisals. This was partly because ELAS did not always warn civilians enough about these harsh responses. After Operation Animals ended, Greece became less important to the Allied war effort.
Changes in Resistance Groups
Operation Animals also helped other resistance groups grow, like EDES and YBE. This was to balance the power of ELAS. YBE decided to start fighting with weapons and formed guerrilla groups. In July 1943, YBE changed its name to Panhellenic Liberation Organization (PAO).
The creation of PAO caused problems with ELAS. PAO gained support from Turkish-speaking Pontic Greeks, who had their own resistance networks and were against communists. In August, ELAS fighters tried to disarm PAO members. When ELAS tried to do the same to the Pontians, the Pontians killed seven ELAS commanders. By the end of August, the conflict between ELAS and PAO turned into a civil war that lasted until December. ELAS managed to defeat PAO's armed groups.
In January 1944, the remaining PAO members asked for German help. They were reformed into units that worked with the Germans against ELAS. PAO then committed many terrible acts. ELAS remained the strongest resistance group in Greece until the end of the war.
After the war, the Treaty of Varkiza weakened the communists. The Greek army and police were rebuilt with former anti-communist resistance members, including some who had worked with the Germans. The Greek Civil War continued until the communists were defeated in 1949.
