&sq=&lang=&file=File:Question_book-new.svg){kind=small} | This article needs additional citations for verification. (February 2013) |
| Paladin Group | |
|---|---|
| Paladín | |
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| Also known as | Paladin |
| Leader | Otto Skorzeny |
| Foundation | 1960s |
| Dates of operation | 1970–1975 |
| Dissolved | 1975 |
| Country |  Francoist Spain |
| Allegiance |  SS veteran networks (such as ODESSA) |
| Motives | Anti-communism, Cultivating escape routes, Revanchism. |
| Headquarters | Madrid, Spain |
| Active regions | Europe |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Far-right |
| Status | Inactive |
| Allies | |
| Opponents |  ETA |
| Battles and wars | Basque conflict, Years of Lead (Italy) |
The Paladin Group (Spanish: Grupo Paladín) was a far-right organization founded in 1970 in Spain by former Waffen-SS Colonel Otto Skorzeny. It conceived itself as the military arm of the anti-Communist struggle during and after the Cold War. It was a private security contractor, the group's purpose was to recruit and operate security contractors to protect anticommunist countries. The group had active communications with post-war SS veteran networks and can be argued to be one of those networks, differing in the fact that they were also providing troops and training to far-right militias, and was a participant of Operation Condor, providing escape routes for former SS-men who were guilty of war-crimes.[5]
- ^ "Funeral de Otto Skorzeny - España 1975". YouTube. 4 February 2019.
- ^ Smith, Stuart (20 September 2018). Otto Skorzeny: The Devil's Disciple. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 10. ISBN 978-1-4728-2947-4.
– 'sore throat' – an allusion to the Ritterkreuz (Knight's Cross), which was worn around the neck. Glory and romance drove Otto Skorzeny – and an acute sense of his own image.
- ^ "Otto Skorzeny - Die Nachkriegskarriere von Hitlers Propagandahelden". www.kriegsreisende.de.
- ^ "Exploring the Nazi Career of Otto Skorzeny, the 'Devil's Disciple'". History@Kingston. 5 July 2023.
- ^ Wertz, Jr., William F. "Nazis, Operation Condor, and Bush's Privatization Plan" (PDF). larouchepub. EIR Investigation. p. 65. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
Piñar's New Force (Fuerza Nueva), the Argentine AAA, and Italian fascists including the Italian Ordine Nuovo led by Salvatore Francia and Pierluigi Concutelli, Spain's Guerillas of Christ the King (founded by Blas Piñar), the Associación Anticommunista Ibérica, Alianza Anticommunista Apostól- ica, and the Paladin group, which had been headed by Skor- zeny until his death in 1975. Dr. Gerhard Hartmut von Schu- bert, formerly of Joseph Göbbels' propaganda ministry, was its operating manager.