Greece marks 81st anniversary of WW2 entry

A military aircraft flies during a military parade in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, on Oct. 28, 2021. Amid COVID-19 restrictions especially in the northern part of the country, Greece celebrated the annual "Ochi (No) Day" on Thursday with military and student parades. (Photo by Dimitris Tosidis/Xinhua)

ATHENS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Amid COVID-19 restrictions especially in the northern part of the country, Greece celebrated for the 81st time the annual "Ochi (No) Day" on Thursday with military and student parades.

On Oct. 28 each year, Greece, Cyprus and the Greek communities around the world commemorate the day when in 1940 then-Prime Minister Ioannis Metaxas said "no" to an ultimatum from Italy to surrender the country to the Axis forces of Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. This marked Greece's entry into World War II.

In the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki, the celebrations culminated with a parade in which military units, including armored vehicles, tanks, infantry and special forces, marched in front of Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou.

For the first time ever, military F-16 jets flew over the city in a formation with a rebuilt Spitfire MJ755 fighter of the 335 Tiger Squadron, the oldest squadron of the Hellenic Air Force established when Greece was under German occupation in October 1941.

"Ochi Day is a day of honor and pride for our nation," Sakellaropoulou said. "A glory moment in our history when the Greeks refused to surrender, they opposed the Nazi invasion and won over the enemy. The Greco-Italian War of 1940 reminds us all of the things we can achieve when we are united."

Due to the recent spike in COVID-19 cases and deaths in several parts of the country, mainly in northern Greece and in Thessaly, the commemorative parades had to be canceled.