On 17 April 1941, Yugoslavia surrendered unconditionally to axis forces. On 29 June, Benito Mussolini proclaimed a greater Albania, with most of Kosovo under Italian occupation united with Albania. There ensued mass killings of Serbs, in particular colonists, and an exodus of tens of thousands of Serbs. After the capitulation of Italy, Nazi Germany took control of the city. In May 1944, 281 local Jews were arrested by units of the 21st ''Waffen'' Mountain Division of the SS ''Skanderbeg'' (1st Albanian), which was made up mostly of Muslim Albanians. The Jews were later deported to Germany, where many were killed. The few surviving Jewish families in Pristina eventually left for Israel in 1949. As a result of World War II and forced migration, Pristina's population dropped to 9,631 inhabitants.