Ref.: DRAG-6643
LAH Division Kleisoura Pass 1941 The not so well-known Battle of Kleisoura Pass occurred on 13-14 April 1941 when the German Leibstandarte SS (LSSAH) unit attacked Greek infantry. This narrow pass between Mt. Vitsi and Mt. Siniatsiko in West Macedonia was important as it was on the defensive line protecting Greek withdrawal routes from Albania. In fact, the Greeks had earlier captured this strategically useful pass from the Italians in January of that year. Greek casualties were heavy in the mid-April battle, and the LSSAH took 1,000 prisoners. The capture of the pass helped break the main line of resistance and allowed German troops to cut off troops in the town of Kastoria. The German LSSAH unit, which began as the Fuhrer’s personal bodyguard, was a brigade-sized formation at the time of Operation Marita, the invasion of Greece and the Balkans.