a group of 20 Muslim families petitioned for their planned exchange to be annulled. This small group was eventually allowed to remain in Parga via mediation by the League of Nations which made their status "non-exchangeable". During the Axis Occupation of Greece, in August 1943, Parga was targeted by the German anti-guerilla operation named 'Augustus'. The Wehrmacht units were actively assisted by units of the Italian army and armed Cham Albanian groups under Nuri Dino, Mazar Dino and Abdul Qasim. On August 10, 1943, the National Republican Greek League (EDES) and the Cham Balli Kombëtar (BK) held a meeting in Parga, attended by representatives of the two organizations including Mazar Dino. EDES asked for the disarmament of the Cham units and for their activity to pass under EDES command. These demands were met with refusal by the Cham BK. On 28 June 1944, EDES took the village and killed 52 Albanians. The following month the left wing National Liberation Front (EAM) arrested 40 local Muslims and executed them. The remaining members of the Muslim community were saved by units of EDES. In general violent incidents in Summer-Autumn 1944 were quite limited and the civilian Muslim community was not found in danger. During the conflicts that resulted in the German retreat, the Axis troops around Parga had the armed support of Cham units. At the end of the war, the remaining Muslim Chams fled to Albania. Albanian is still spoken by a part of the inhabitants in of the municipality which includes a much broader area than the immediate vicinity of Parga itself. In the settlements of the Fanari plain, Albanian is still spoken, while in some settlements like Anthousa and Kanallaki, the closest existing variants of Souliotic Albanian are still spoken by a few people in modern times. Various cultural and educational foundations in Parga were erected due to bequests by prominent locals, such as Athanasios Deskas. The modern town in general preserves its traditional architectural features. Castle of Parga The Castle is found on the top of a hill overlooking the town and was used to protect the town from invasions from the mainland and the sea. It was initially built in the 11th century by the residents of Parga to protect their town from pirates and the Ottomans. In the 13th century, as their control of the region increased, the Venetians rebuilt the castle to fortify the area.