23rd Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Kama (2nd Croatian)

23rd Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Kama (2nd Croatian)
Insignia of 23rd Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Kama (not issued)
Active	1944
Country	Germany
Branch	Waffen-SS
Type	Mountain infantry
Role	Anti-partisan operations
Size	Division (never reached divisional strength)
Nickname(s)	Kama
Engagements	southern Hungary in World War II
Commanders
Notable commanders	Helmuth Raithel
Insignia
Identification symbol	Vergina Sun

The 23rd Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Kama (2nd Croatian) was a German mountain infantry division of the Waffen-SS, the armed wing of the German Nazi Party that served alongside but was never formally part of the Wehrmacht during World War II. At the post-war Nuremberg trials, the Waffen-SS was declared to be a criminal organisation due to its major involvement in war crimes and crimes against humanity. The division was composed of German officers and Bosnian Muslim soldiers. Named Kama after a small dagger used by Balkan shepherds, it was one of the thirty-eight divisions fielded by the Waffen-SS during World War II. Formed on 19 June 1944, it was built around a cadre from the 13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian) but did not reach its full strength and never saw action as a formation.

Elements of the division fought briefly against Soviet forces in southern Hungary in early October 1944 alongside the 31st SS Volunteer Grenadier Division. They were soon disengaged from the front line in Hungary and had begun a move to the German puppet state, the Independent State of Croatia, to join the 13th SS Division when the Bosnian Muslim soldiers of the Kama division mutinied on 17 October 1944. The cadre quickly regained control, but the mutiny resulted in the division being formally dissolved on 31 October 1944.