French ship Sinfra
Encyclopedia
The Sinfra was a French cargo ship, which sank on 20 October 1943 at Suda Bay, Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
, killing some 2,098 Italian POW's.
Background
The GreekGreece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
island of Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
had been captured by the Germans in the Battle of Crete
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the code-name Unternehmen Merkur...
in May 1941, and was occupied by a mixed German-Italian force. The Italian garrison unit was the 51st Siena Infantry Division
51 Infantry Division Siena
The 51 Infantry Division Siena was a regular Infantry Division of the Italian Army during World War II. The Siena Division was fully mobilized in August 1940, for service in the occupation of Albania in the following September. It took part in the Greco-Italian War as part of the Italian VIII...
, consisting of some 21,700 men, which occupied the easternmost prefecture of Lasithi
Lasithi
Lasithi is the easternmost regional unit on the island of Crete, to the east of Heraklion. Its capital is Agios Nikolaos, the other major towns being Ierapetra, Sitia and Neapoli. The mountains include the Dikte to the west and the Sitia Mountains to the east...
.
On 8 September 1943 the Armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces was signed, and the Italians in Crete and elsewhere were disarmed
Operation Achse
Operation Achse , also called Operation Alaric, were the codenames of the German plans to forcibly disarm the Italian armed forces after their expected armistice with the Allied forces...
by the Germans without major problems. As elsewhere, they were given the choice to continue the war alongside Germany, or to be sent to the Reich
Reich
Reich is a German word cognate with the English rich, but also used to designate an empire, realm, or nation. The qualitative connotation from the German is " sovereign state." It is the word traditionally used for a variety of sovereign entities, including Germany in many periods of its history...
to perform forced labor
Italian military internees
Italian military internees was the official name given by Germany to the Italian soldiers captured, rounded up and deported in the territories of the Third Reich in Operation Achse in the days immediately following the Armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces .After disarmament by the...
.
A minority chose to continue the fight and formed the Legione Italiana Volontaria Creta.
The disaster
The Sinfra was a French cargo ship Aveyron of 4470 tons, confiscated by the Germans. On 20 October 1943, 2,460 prisoners were crammed in the cargo hold of the ship to be transported to the Greek mainland. There were also 204 Germans on board. At Suda Bay, the ship was attacked by USAAF B-25s and RAFRoyal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
Beaufighters and sunk. 2,098 POW's drowned.