ABSTRACT
This chapter analyses the contribution of ethnic minorities and diaspora groups to the anti-fascist resistance in Albania, both during the authoritarian rule of Ahmet Zogu (1925–1939) and during the Italian occupation (1939–1944). In the preoccupation years, it was impossible to have a structured anti-fascist resistance inside the country due to the repression by the Albanian government. A crucial role was played in that period by diaspora groups dispersed in the main capitals of Europe and overseas. Indeed, these groups, composed of prominent intellectuals, were the main opponents of Zogu and consequently of the fascist hegemony on which his regime was based. After the Italian invasion of Albania in 1939, the anti-fascist resistance took another shape, fuelled by communist movements operating inside and outside the country. Hence, the small ethnic group of Jews in Albania, joined by their co-nationals who took refuge in Albania, made a significant military and non-military contribution. This chapter also discusses the involvement of the Greek minority, located in the southeastern part of the country, that assumed essential importance in the anti-fascist resistance during the Italian-Greek conflict which occurred at the borders of the Albanian territory 1940–1941. The study shows the dynamics, military, diplomatic, and civil movements but also the social and human aspects, which characterized the contribution of these groups to the anti-fascist resistance in Albania.
