[2] The Slovak Army was called up, as the regime sought to demonstrate its indispensability to Nazi Germany and its greater loyalty than Hungary.

the Pilfousek Brigade), was formed from units selected from this force; the rest of the Slovak army was relegated to rear-area security duty.

Slovak troops took part in Operation Bamberg, an anti-partisan action in which 5,000 alleged partisans, including 200 Jews, were shot.

[3] Slovak soldiers participated in numerous pogroms and frequently robbed Jews during the first days and weeks of the occupation in the summer of 1941.

Many Slovak soldiers and the army leadership nevertheless approved of the anti-Semitic actions, due in part to the large amount of propaganda promoting the Jewish Bolshevik canard.