Editing Paros (section)

=== WWII and Nazi Occupation ===
During the WWII [[Axis occupation of Greece]], Paros was originally occupied by the Italians until 1943. The [[Nazism|Nazis]] then took over the island in 1944 and imposed brutal rule from the beginning.  

In 1944, during the German occupation of Paros, the island's strategic importance led to the forced construction of an airfield near the village of [[Marpissa, Paros|Marpissa]]. The project amassed over 400 forced Greek workers at one point.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Henry |first=L. deZeng IV |date=March 2015 |title=Luftwaffe Airfields 1935-45 Greece, Crete and the Dodecanese |url=https://www.ww2.dk/Airfields%20-%20Greece%20Crete%20and%20the%20Dodecanese.pdf}}</ref> Local resistance, aided by the Allies, sought to sabotage the project, with Nikolas Stellas, a 23-year-old partisan, emerging as a key figure. Captured by the Germans, Stellas refused to provide any names or information and was therefore publicly hanged, becoming a symbol of resistance. In retaliation, 125 Parians were condemned to execution. However, Major Georg Graf von Merenberg, the German commander, was persuaded by Abbot Philotheos Zervakos to spare them, influenced by Stellas' sacrifice and the abbot's appeal to his humanity.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lively Arts - Human Interest |url=http://www.lively-arts.com/humaninterest/2012/03/closed_circle.htm#:~:text=In%201944,%20Paros%20was%20occupied,of%20Prodromos,%20Marmara%20and%20Marpissa. |access-date=2024-08-26 |website=www.lively-arts.com}}</ref>

British commandos and local partisans conducted a successful operation that led to the attack on German forces stationed there. The operation included the sabotage of German communication lines and the abduction of a key German officer. This resistance effort was part of a broader Allied strategy in the Aegean during World War II, contributing to the disruption of German military operations in the region.<ref>{{Cite web |title="Word is Vendetta" – The abduction of general Kreipe and the attack on Paros, April-May 1944. |url=https://thomasharder.dk/en/word-vendetta-abduction-general-kreipe-and-attack-paros-april-may-1944 |access-date=2024-08-26 |website=thomasharder.dk}}</ref> The airfield constructed by the Germans in Marpissa was later bombed by the British. There are no remains of it today.<ref name=":0" />