Greeks, Macedonians, Albanians in International Brigades?

[Dritan]

Mehmet Shehu, an Albanian, fought in the International Brigades. He was a Muslim volunteer. He was a member of the Garibaldi Brigade. He served as a combat officer.

Before the SCW he had been a cadet at an Italian military academy , but was expelled when his involvement in Communist activities was discovered.

He was a hardcore Stalinist. He had a reputation for cruelty on and off the battlefield.. He escaped into France at the end of the Spanish Civil War. Eventually he ended up back in Albania and a Communist commander fighting against the Italians and the Germans. He had an excellent combat record as a guerilla fighter. He came into conflict with three British operatives air dropped into Albania during ww2, but that is a different story...

He survived the war and became Enver Hoxha's right hand man for several decades. In the early 1980's he was involved in a power struggle with Hoxha over succession. He died in 1981. Some say he committed suicide and others say he was murdered. I read once that he was shot dead at a cabinet meeting.

He escaped Greece and he went to France and meet with my cousin Xhelal Mezan Bajrami. Xhelal he was my dads uncle, both Mehmet Shehu and my cousin participated in the Spanish civil war and became good “friends”.
At the time Xhelal Çami left Greece from a place called Grigohori Chameria which it was in south Albania, today belongs to Greece and called from Greeks North Epirus.

(Chameria it was annexed to Greece in the later half of 1912, when the Ottoman Empire was retreating from a large part of the Balkan Peninsula as a result of the Empire’s defeat in the First Balkan War. This was also the period when Albanian independence was declared. conflict arose as a result of the delineation of the border between Greece and Albania at the end of the Balkan Wars. In 1912 the London Ambassador's Conference allotted the Chameria region to Greece, so today only seven Cham villages, centred on the village of Konispol, are in Albania itself. There were three distinct phases of emigration of the Cham population from northern Greece. The first occurred during the Balkan Wars 1912-1914, the second following the signing of the Turkish-Greek Convention at Lausanne in January 1923, and the third
The Cham Issue - Albanian National & Property Claims in Greece
occurred at the end of the Second World War)

He left Greece and he was living in Paris. He was married there and he had two children and meet with Mehmet in Spanish civil war at Brigade Garibaldi. He looked after Mehmet Shehu which was injured. Both shared with each other communist views.
Eventually Mehmet ended up back in Albania and a Communist commander fighting against the Italians and the Germans. He had an excellent combat record as a guerilla fighter.
He survived the war and became Enver Hoxha's right hand man. Round the 1950s my cousin Xhelal join the Paris communist party and he was ordered from Mehmet Shehu to kill some other Albanian member from the communist party with a last name Xhelo.
Xhelal called in Spanish civil war as Çami. He succeeded in his mission to kill one communist traitor, after he assasinated Xhelo he was wanted from France police. On the run the only save place for him was to escape and go in Albania.

Eventually he went back to Albania and meet Mehmet Shehu and he went to vizit his sister Naile (she was my dads mother) and my dad. He was interned by Mehmet in Lushnja under the pretext of hiding.
The Spanish Civil War had left him with some old wounds and tuberculosis. After a while, Xhelal ends up in a military hospital in Tirana. From there he writes to my dad and asked meeting him as soon as possible.
Dad went to meet him but his body was never to be found. He later learned that he had been poisoned. In search of Xhelal in one of the communist offices in Tirana, my father had been threatened not to be searching for his uncle anymore because he would end up killed as well.
What happened to Xhelal Mezan Bajrami even today is unknown. Maybe he was poisoned from Albanian communist Party....(maybe Mehmet Shehu).
Anyone who has any more information related to my dads uncle Xhelal Mezan Bajrami (Çami) please write to me at my email:dritan.mehmeti@yahoo.com

[Dritan]

Mehmet Shehu, an Albanian, fought in the International Brigades. He was a Muslim volunteer. He was a member of the Garibaldi Brigade. He served as a combat officer.

Before the SCW he had been a cadet at an Italian military academy , but was expelled when his involvement in Communist activities was discovered.

He was a hardcore Stalinist. He had a reputation for cruelty on and off the battlefield.. He escaped into France at the end of the Spanish Civil War. Eventually he ended up back in Albania and a Communist commander fighting against the Italians and the Germans. He had an excellent combat record as a guerilla fighter. He came into conflict with three British operatives air dropped into Albania during ww2, but that is a different story...

He survived the war and became Enver Hoxha's right hand man for several decades. In the early 1980's he was involved in a power struggle with Hoxha over succession. He died in 1981. Some say he committed suicide and others say he was murdered. I read once that he was shot dead at a cabinet meeting.

He escaped to France seriously injured and he stay with my cousin Xhelal for 72 days. Xhelal he was my dads uncle, both Mehmet Shehu and my cousin participated in the Spanish civil war and became good “friends”.
Xhelal escaped from the Greece from a place called Grigohori Chameria which it was in south Albania today belongs to Greece and called from Greeks North Epirus and he went to Tirana Albania. There he meet Mehmet Shehu and both they join a cadet at an Italian military academy , but they were expelled when they involvement in Communist activities was discovered.

(Chameria it was annexed to Greece in the later half of 1912, when the Ottoman Empire was retreating from a large part of the Balkan Peninsula as a result of the Empire’s defeat in the First Balkan War. This was also the period when Albanian independence was declared. conflict arose as a result of the delineation of the border between Greece and Albania at the end of the Balkan Wars. In 1912 the London Ambassador's Conference allotted the Chameria region to Greece, so today only seven Cham villages, centred on the village of Konispol, are in Albania itself. There were three distinct phases of emigration of the Cham population from northern Greece. The first occurred during the Balkan Wars 1912-1914, the second following the signing of the Turkish-Greek Convention at Lausanne in January 1923, and the third
The Cham Issue - Albanian National & Property Claims in Greece
occurred at the end of the Second World War)

He escaped the academy and he was living in Paris. He was married there and he had two children and meet with Mehmet again in Spanish civil war at Brigade Garibaldi. Xhelal left the war injuredand he went back to France.
He looked after Mehmet Shehu which was injured as well. They strengthened they friendship and shared with each other communist views.
Eventually Mehmet ended up back to Albania and there he became Communist commander fighting against the Italians and the Germans. He had an excellent combat record as a guerilla fighter. Round this time Mehmet and Xhelal they keep strong relationship with each other.

Mehmet survived the war and became Enver Hoxha's right hand man. Round the 1950s my cousin Xhelal join the Paris communist party.
At the time he was ordered from Mehmet Shehu to kill some other Albanian member from the communist party with a last name Xhelo.
Xhelal called in Spanish civil war as Çami. He succeeded in his mission to kill the communist traitor, after he assasinated a Albanian traitor with the last name Xhelo he was wanted from France police. While on the run the only save place for him was to escape and go back in Albania.
Eventually he went back to Albania and meet Mehmet Shehu and he went to vizit his sister Naile (she was my dads mother) and my dad. He was interned by Mehmet in Lushnja under the pretext of hiding.
The Spanish Civil War had left him with some old wounds and tuberculosis. After a while, Xhelal some how ends up in a military hospital in Tirana. From there he writes to my dad and he ask my father to come and see him as soon as possible.
Dad went to meet him but he was late Xhelal was already dead. So desperate he could find his uncle my father insisted on finding his grave. He was told his uncle was dead already and no one knows where is grave is.
He later learned that he had been poisoned. In search of Xhelal in one of the communist offices in Tirana, my father had been threatened not to be searching for his uncle anymore because he would end up killed as well.
What happened to Xhelal Mezan Bajrami even today is unknown. Maybe he was poisoned from Albanian communist Party....(maybe Mehmet Shehu) or from Enver Hoxha.
Anyone who has any more information related to my dads uncle Xhelal Mezan Bajrami (Çami) please write to me at my email:dritan.mehmeti@yahoo.com

Mehmet Shehu, an Albanian, fought in the International Brigades. He was a Muslim volunteer. He was a member of the Garibaldi Brigade. He served as a combat officer.

Before the SCW he had been a cadet at an Italian military academy , but was expelled when his involvement in Communist activities was discovered.

He was a hardcore Stalinist. He had a reputation for cruelty on and off the battlefield.. He escaped into France at the end of the Spanish Civil War. Eventually he ended up back in Albania and a Communist commander fighting against the Italians and the Germans. He had an excellent combat record as a guerilla fighter. He came into conflict with three British operatives air dropped into Albania during ww2, but that is a different story...

He survived the war and became Enver Hoxha's right hand man for several decades. In the early 1980's he was involved in a power struggle with Hoxha over succession. He died in 1981. Some say he committed suicide and others say he was murdered. I read once that he was shot dead at a cabinet meeting.

He escaped to France seriously injured and he stay with my cousin Xhelal for 72 days. Xhelal Abaz Mezani he was my dads uncle, both Mehmet Shehu and my cousin participated in the Spanish civil war and became good “friends”.
Xhelal escaped from the Greece from a place called Grigohori Chameria which it was in south Albania today belongs to Greece and called from Greeks North Epirus and he went to Tirana Albania. There he meet Mehmet Shehu and both they join a cadet at an Italian military academy , but they were expelled when they involvement in Communist activities was discovered.

(Chameria it was annexed to Greece in the later half of 1912, when the Ottoman Empire was retreating from a large part of the Balkan Peninsula as a result of the Empire’s defeat in the First Balkan War. This was also the period when Albanian independence was declared. conflict arose as a result of the delineation of the border between Greece and Albania at the end of the Balkan Wars. In 1912 the London Ambassador's Conference allotted the Chameria region to Greece, so today only seven Cham villages, centred on the village of Konispol, are in Albania itself. There were three distinct phases of emigration of the Cham population from northern Greece. The first occurred during the Balkan Wars 1912-1914, the second following the signing of the Turkish-Greek Convention at Lausanne in January 1923, and the third
The Cham Issue - Albanian National & Property Claims in Greece
occurred at the end of the Second World War)

He escaped Albania and he was living in Paris. He was married there and he had two children and meet with Mehmet again in Spanish civil war at Brigade Garibaldi. Xhelal escaped the was and he went back to France.
He looked after Mehmet Shehu which was injured.They strengthened they friendship and shared with each other communist views.
Eventually Mehmet ended up back in Albania and a Communist commander fighting against the Italians and the Germans. He had an excellent combat record as a guerilla fighter. Round this time Mehmet and Xhelal they keep strong relationship with each other.

Mehmet survived the war and became Enver Hoxha's right hand man. Round the 1950s my cousin Xhelal join the Paris communist party.
At the time he was ordered from Mehmet Shehu to kill some other Albanian member from the communist party with a last name Xhelo.
Xhelal Abaz Bajrami called in Spanish civil war as Çami. He succeeded in his mission to kill the communist traitor, after he assasinated a Albanian traitor with the last name Xhelo he was wanted from France police. While on the run the only save place for him was to escape and go back in Albania.
Eventually he went back to Albania and meet Mehmet Shehu and he went to vizit his sister Naile (she was my dads mother) and my dad. He was interned by Mehmet in Lushnja under the pretext of hiding.
The Spanish Civil War had left him with some old wounds and tuberculosis. After a while, Xhelal some how ends up in a military hospital in Tirana. From there he writes to my dad and he ask my to come and see him as soon as possible.
Dad went to meet him but he was late. Desperate that he came late insisted on finding his grave. He was told his uncle was dead already.
After my dad try to find the grave his body was never to be found. He later learned that he had been poisoned. In search of Xhelal in one of the communist offices in Tirana, my father had been threatened not to be searching for his uncle anymore because he would end up killed as well.
What happened to Xhelal Mezan Bajrami even today is unknown. Maybe he was poisoned from Albanian communist Party....(maybe Mehmet Shehu).
Anyone who has any more information related to my dads uncle Xhelal Mezan Bajrami (Çami) please write to me at my email:dritan.mehmeti@yahoo.com