Editing East Germany (section)

==== Combat groups of the working class ====
The {{lang|de|[[Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse]]}} (Combat Groups of the Working Class; KdA) numbered around 400,000 men for much of their existence, and were organised around factories. The KdA was the political-military instrument of the SED; it was essentially a "party army". All KdA directives and decisions were made by the ZK's {{lang|de|[[Politburo|Politbüro]]}}. They received their training from the Volkspolizei and the Ministry of the Interior. Membership was voluntary, but SED members were required to join as part of their membership obligation.