Central Committee of the Northern Epirote Struggle

KEVA
KEVA
Κεντρική Επιτροπή Βορειοηπειρωτικού Αγώνα
	Flag of the Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus
Leaders	Panteleimon Kotokos (until 1969); Stefanos Venakidhis; Nikolaos Pagos; Serafeimi-Visarion Tika
Foundation	1943 (during the German occupation of Greece)
Dates of operation	World War II–era (during the German occupation of Greece;; 1943; Cold War–era;; 1948–1958
Motives	Annexation of Northern Epirus
Ideology	Greek nationalism; Anti-Albanian sentiment; Anti–Hoxhaism
Size	7,300
Allies	Western bloc United States; Greece; Italy; Non-state allies: EDES; CIA;
Opponents	Communist Albania Albanian People's Army; Sigurimi;
Battles and wars	Cold War Operation Valuable; ;

The Central Committee of the Northern Epirote Struggle (KEVA; Kentriki Epitropi Voreioepirotikou Agonos: Central; Greek: Κεντρική Επιτροπή Βορειοηπειρωτικού Αγώνα),^[1] was an resistance faction composed of ethnic Greeks whose goal was to overthrow the regime of Enver Hoxha and seek the annexation of the Northern Epirus, which is located in southern Albania.

KEVA was established during the World War II where Greece was still occupied by the Axis powers but played its role during the Cold War when the United States and its intelligence agencies attempted to contain the influence of communism in the region. The organization conducted various activities, including gathering information, providing support, and coordinating agent groups in Albania.^[3]

Leadership and membership

The organization was led by various individuals, including Stefanos Venakidhis, who also served as the secretary of KEVA and worked for the National Bank of Greece, and Nikolaos Pagos, a doctor and deputy chairman of KEVA. The president of this faction is Archbishop of Greece Seraphim, a former ally of Napoleon Zervas and member of the resistance group ELAS. The organization had a significant number of members in Greece and Southern Albania. They had a strength of about 7,300 ethnic Greek men.^[4]

Representatives of the Committee in Albania

Sophocles Kalemis
Theodore Priftis
Alekos Eleftheriou
Serran Menjoli
Islami Bako
Nikolaos Papagiannis
Vassilios Kitas
Rakipi Mourto
Refat Zache
Izet Kani
Andreas Hajdis
Lambros Eliades
loannis Skouras
Pavlos Pavlou
Demetrios Vassis
Michael Gionnis
Charalambos Papavassiliou
Selim Huri
Fanis Goulouas
Demetrios Tsoukas
Pavlos Vassou
Nejip Ozmani
Etem Blatchia
Michael Dokos
Loannis Spongos
Fillipos Liaskos
Gregorios Ghikas

References

^ Heraclides, Alexis; Kromidha, Ylli (2023-09-28). Greek-Albanian Entanglements since the Nineteenth Century: A History. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-96375-5.
^ Heraclides, Alexis; Kromidha, Ylli (2023-09-28). Greek-Albanian Entanglements since the Nineteenth Century: A History. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-96375-5. There were various Northern Epirote organisations active in Greece, whose numbers tended to rise through the years. The most important one by far was KEVA (Kentriki Epitropi Voreioepirotikou Agonos: Central Committee of the Northern Epirote Struggle), which had been set up in 1943 during the German occupation and functioned as the central coordinating body of all the Northern Epirus organisations in Greece, save one named Selasforos that retained its independence. KEVA which was based in Athens had regional committees in loannina, Corfu, Thessaloniki and Patras. It was headed by Metropolitan Panteleimon as president until his death in 1969.
^ "Zbulohen emrat që dolën kundër regjimit komunist në Shqipëri, Enver Hoxha armatosi të besuarit e tij". Pamfleti. 2018. Retrieved 2023-11-06.
^ "List of Greek agents in Albania by CIA". Oculus News. 2017-02-28. Retrieved 2023-11-06.

[1] Heraclides, Alexis; Kromidha, Ylli (2023-09-28). Greek-Albanian Entanglements since the Nineteenth Century: A History. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-96375-5.

[2] Heraclides, Alexis; Kromidha, Ylli (2023-09-28). Greek-Albanian Entanglements since the Nineteenth Century: A History. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-96375-5. There were various Northern Epirote organisations active in Greece, whose numbers tended to rise through the years. The most important one by far was KEVA (Kentriki Epitropi Voreioepirotikou Agonos: Central Committee of the Northern Epirote Struggle), which had been set up in 1943 during the German occupation and functioned as the central coordinating body of all the Northern Epirus organisations in Greece, save one named Selasforos that retained its independence. KEVA which was based in Athens had regional committees in loannina, Corfu, Thessaloniki and Patras. It was headed by Metropolitan Panteleimon as president until his death in 1969.

[3] "Zbulohen emrat që dolën kundër regjimit komunist në Shqipëri, Enver Hoxha armatosi të besuarit e tij". Pamfleti. 2018. Retrieved 2023-11-06.

[4] "List of Greek agents in Albania by CIA". Oculus News. 2017-02-28. Retrieved 2023-11-06.

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