On July 11th 1942, the Germans summoned the Jewish men of Thessaloniki aged 18-45, excluding those with Italian or Spanish citizenship, to Eleftherias Square in order to register them for forced labour far from Thessaloniki. The order, given by the commander of the Wehrmacht administration Thessaloniki- Aegean, was published in city newspapers and heavy penalties were anticipated for those not responding to that call. Approximately 7,000-9,000 people gathered there at 8 a.m. and they were forced by beating to remain standing until noon under the hot sun, without any protection. German soldiers prolonged their anguish by forcing them to do gymnastic exercises and beating those who fell due to exhaustion, even war invalids. From surrounding windows and balconies, German men and women, as well as their Greek associates were watching the spectacle, mocking those gathered. The whole episode stopped at 2 in the afternoon, when these men were released, in order to prepare their travel towards their place of work. The 11th of July has since been called "Black Saturday".