The name given to the armed militias was Ohrana ( - "Protection" in Bulgarian). The reasons of locals for taking arms varied. Some of the men were pre-war members of IMRO, and thus harbored deep Bulgarian convictions, some to assist in self-defense of Greek attacks, others due to pro-Nazi sentiments, some to avenge repressions inflicted on them by Greek authorities during the Metaxas dictatorship, and many others to defend themselves from attacks by other Greek resistance movements, which saw them as collaborationists with the Italian, Bulgarian and German forces. In the summer of 1944, Ohrana constituted some 12,000 local fighters and volunteers from Bulgaria charged with protection of the local population.