Aziz Çami

Edit links
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Aziz Çami
Albanian Resistance of World War II
RelationsQamil Çami

Aziz Çami (1893 – 15 December 1943) was an

King Zog I. During World War II, he joined the ranks of the Balli Kombëtar and fought with Nazi Germany.[1] He was assassinated in Tirana
in 1943.

Life

Aziz Çami, a member of the

Torino
as an artillery officer. After his participation in the Vlora War in 1920, Çami became a follower of
Zog of Albania regime.[5]

Hasan Prishtina and Mustafa Merlika-Kruja, two people that led the anti Zog associations in Vienna at that time organized killing of the king by enrolling Aziz Çami and Ndok Gjeloshi, both former gendarmerie officers and convinced republicans. According to Gjeloshi memories' he studied very well the scene before the assassination attempt occurred.[6]

On February 20, 1931, Çami and Gjeloshi attempted to assassinate Zog in

Eqrem Libohova was wounded, Zog himself was unharmed.[7] According to some sources, Zog even managed to pull out his own pistol and to shoot back at the assassins without managing to hurt anyone.[7] On Zog's return in Albania there was rejoicing for his survival, although such attempts were not uncommon: it is alleged that Zog was the subject of 55 assassination attempts during his rule.[7] Both Çami and Gjeloshi held Yugoslavian passports at that time, although it is unlikely that Yugoslavia at that time would desire Zog's death, as that would have entailed an intervention of the Kingdom of Italy to Albania, which was not in Yugoslav interest.[7]

According to Gjeloshi's memories, Gjeloshi killed Llesh Topallaj because he mistook him for the King, Topallaj having military clothes: instead Zog was in civil clothes; in addition it was also Gjeloshi who wounded Eqrem Libohova[6] Gjeloshi also recalled that Çami's revolver did not work twice and Çami's third shot was unlucky, because it was already late.[6] In addition Gjeloshi contradicted that Zog had made any attempts to defend himself; neither did the king extract his own pistol to shoot back anyone.[6] Furthermore, Llesh Topallaj himself never covered with his body the king as some Albanian legends sustain, because Topallaj was shot by Gjeloshi and had no time to react.[6] Everything according to Gjeloshi occurred in no more than a few seconds, because the Austrian security reacted immediately and caught both assassins.[6]

In 1939, after the occupation of

Kingdom of Italy, the Italian authorities appointed him chief of police of Korçë, but Çami defected and joined Balli Kombëtar, a resistance organization of which he would become commander of a battalion that actively assisted German troops.[8][need quotation to verify] In 1943 he became commander of the Vlorë forces of Balli Kombëtar, succeeding Hysni Lepenica, who had died during a conflict with the Italian troops. Çami himself was killed by Albanian communists in December 1943, in the same square where Avni Rustemi had been assassinated in 1924.[9]

References

  1. ISBN 9781780764313
    .
  2. S2CID 252823486. Retrieved 11 April 2023. Asiz Çami), από το χωριό Γιάννιαρη της Κονίσπολης {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help
    )
  3. ^ Dralo, Androkli. "How King Zog escaped the 15 bullets of the Vienna assassination attempt". Washington Post (Albanian service) (in Albanian). Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  4. ^ Qafoku, Roland; Delia, Etleva (2008). "Llesh Topallaj: How the first commander of the national guard died while protecting King Zog". Tirana Observer. Archived from the original on 13 February 2011. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  5. ^ Kaloci, Dashnor (2008-11-17). "Dy letrat e panjohura te Sejfulla Maleshoves nga Leningradi ne 1928-en". Parajsa (in Albanian). Archived from the original on 2010-12-30. Retrieved 1 September 2010.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Milani, Prelë. "Ja atentatet kundër Mbretit Zog". Fjala e Lire (in Albanian). Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  7. ^
    ISBN 1-86064-541-0
    .
  8. ISBN 1-84511-014-5
    .
  9. ISBN 978-1-84511-104-5
    p.313
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Aziz_Çami&oldid=1220277358"