Nazi plot to use Vlach saboteurs uncovered
Newly discovered documents from the Second World War have uncovered a botched attempt by the Third Reich to create instability in Greece in early 1945 by parachuting a team of Greek-speaking Vlachs from Romania into the country, a British history professor has revealed, writing in Kathimerini. Richard Clogg, an Emeritus Fellow of Saint Antony’s College, Oxford, has discovered the untold story of a team of 14 Vlachs given three weeks of rudimentary training before they were dropped into the Peloponnese from where they were to radio back information about the political situation in Greece. They were also ordered to engage in propaganda and sabotage. The plan fell apart instantly as the group was scattered upon landing on Greek soil, not having completed a single practice jump during their training. Their supplies were also lost and a group of seven tried to make their way back to Romania but were arrested after attempting to pay at a cafe with a gold sovereign and dollars. The group had not been given any Greek money. Their story was contained in a top-secret report by a British officer.
