On Sunday, 31 May 2020, the Minister of National Defence Mr. Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos attended the Memorial Service in memory of the fallen Raiders, which was held at the Mountain Commando Companies’ Monument, at Kavouri, Attica. The ceremony was attended by the Deputy Minister of National Defence Mr. Alkiviadis Stefanis, the Chief/HNDGS General Konstantinos Floros, the Chief/HAGS Lieutenant General Charalambos Laloussis, representatives of political Parties, as well as representatives of the Local Self-Administration and the Clergy.

The Minister of National Defence pointed out the following in his address:

“Ladies and Gentlemen,

We gathered here today, on the last Sunday of May, as we regularly do for the last 70 years, to pay tribute and pray that the Raider Forces’ Officers and Soldiers who ‘Fell in Action’ rest in peace.

The raiders are the bearers of a long lasting tradition, of a tough and continuous training. Not only in order to meet the particular operational requirements, but to comprehend exactly, to get awareness of this especially glorious history and tradition: to comprehend the steps of their predecessors that they must follow.

The glorious Raiders fought inside and outside of the borders and fell heroically in action, defending the values, the ideals, the traditions and mostly the freedom of our country.

They are also a continuance of the long lasting and dignified history of the Greek heroes, who followed the legacy of ‘come back with your shield or on it’ and sacrificed themselves for the cause of duty.

Their sacrifice has been a shining example until today for generations of Greek Raiders and for all of the Armed Forces, while their legacy was the foundation for the modern Greek special forces.

Ladies and gentlemen,

In today’s plain ceremony, we pay tribute and bow to the Greek Raiders, who shed their blood and put their own mark in the glorious and long lasting Greek history.

It is our duty to fight for the ideals, the security and independence of the Country, so that their sacrifices have an even greater importance. I would like to thank you stating that I am proud and, at the same time, sure for the qualities of the Greek Raiders.

The Chief/HNDGS General Konstantinos Floros pointed out in his address:

‘I devoutly bow, remembering the Immortal fallen for Faith and Country of the Greek Sacred Bands and the heroically fallen Raiders in every struggle of our Nation struggle for Freedom and Independence.

I pay tribute to those brave men, who, by surpassing the limits of mediocrity, became heroes, symbols of virtue, an example for imitation and incomparable standards. I pay tribute to those fearless men of the Sacred Bands and Raiders, who put aside even the instinct of self-preservation itself and shed their blood for the what our nation hold most sacred, following the path to immortality, in the prime of youth, after having fully done their Duty.

This Duty, the Duty towards the Country and Nation, was the guide and flame that inspired the mind and set the hearts on fire, of those great, heroic and magnificent Greeks, famous and anonymous alike, who manned, through time, the Sacred Bands of Thebes and Pelopide, of Dragatsani and Nikolaos Ipsilantis, and the most recent, the Middle East Sacred Band and Christodoulos Tsigantes. Fighting from ancient times until today, at any cost, ‘obeying their commands’, they taught us and they will always teach us about the real Duty towards the Country and the way to execute it…

The heart overflows with pride and gratitude, as we honour those fighters, who, through their short but essential life, showed us that the path of honour and duty is the only choice, if we want to preserve our dignity and pride as a Nation. Because times change, everyday life’s priorities change, but the Duty towards the Country remains the same, magnificent and unchanged. Self-sacrifice, Honour, Duty, Contribution, Self-denial, Selflessness, Dignity are simple words, but with great meaning. Words that the heroes we honour today kept deeply in their hearts.

Our today’s Raiders, worthy men who carry Tsigante and his comrade-in-arms’ tradition on, face the same moon that they faced during their risky missions. They climb the same wind-swept and corroded by salt rocks and find shelter in the same bays with the Sacred Band men, to escape adverse weather conditions.

The Special Forces were and still are the sharpened spear-head of our Armed Forces, the elite of our Army. Realising the seriousness of the mission that they will be called upon to fulfil, in a complex and very challenging operations theatre, from the first moment that I assumed the duties of the Chief/HNDGS, my priority was their modernization, under the rule of self-reliance in assets and personnel and of promptness in decision making and implementation. In this context, the Joint Chiefs of General Staff Council approved the formation of a joint Special War Command, the striking force of which will comprise the men who continue the tradition of the fighters we honour today, the most select from all three Services.

The duty inherited by the heroically fallen Sacred Bands men and Raiders is heavy. As descendants, we have the sacred duty to keep our Flag high, as they did.

One might ask ‘I wonder, if necessary, can we be as good as they were’?

Yes, I can assure you that if and when necessary, we will succeed. Because the material and seed that the Greeks were made of, which made them successful and victorious in the past, is not lost, it is unchanged. The words of our great poet Kostis Palamas constantly echo in our ears:

‘We owe to those who passed, they will come, they will pass,

Judges will judge us, the unborn and the dead’.

The bonds of those serving or served the idea of the ‘Armed Forces’ are indissoluble and never break. We are descendants of glorious and brave fighters. Our glorious heroic tradition must go on. Especially now, that the things in our neighbourhood become more tense and the geopolitical chessboard is on fire, we proceed with overmastering will, inspired by their example and the ultimate sacrifice of our heroes, ready to crash any enemy who will make the mistake of underestimating us.

Honour and glory to the heroically fallen Sacred Bands men and Raiders!’.