The Marzabotto massacre was a World War II mass murder that took place in the territory around the small village of Marzabotto, in the mountainous area south of Bologna. It was the worst massacre of civilians committed by the Waffen SS in Italy, during the war.
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Massacre
In reprisal of the local support given to the partisans and the resistance movement (between September 29 and October 5, 1944), soldiers of the SS-Panzer-Aufklärungsabteilung 16 , led by SS-Sturmbannführer Walter Reder, systematically killed hundreds of people in Marzabotto, and in the adjacent Grizzana Morandi and Monzuno that is in the area of the massif of Monte Sole (part of the Apennine range, in the province of Bologna).
Some confusion regarding the number of victims arose, during the years: some sources reported up to 1,830 victims, others estimate 955 people killed. Today, the Peace School Foundation of Monte Sole reports 770 victims. This number is quite close to the official report written by Sturmbannführer Reder, stating the "execution of 728 bandits". Among the victims, 45 were less than 2-years-old, 110 were less than 10-years-old, 95 were less than 16-years-old, 142 were more than 60-years-old, 316 were females and five were Catholic priests.
2007 trial
In January 2007, 10 of 17 suspected former SS members were found guilty in absentia by an Italian military tribunal, in the North Italian town of La Spezia. They were sentenced to life imprisonment for the massacre. The Italian media reported that the 10 were also ordered to pay roughly €100 million to the survivors and relatives of the victims. Seven suspects were acquitted.[1]
See also
References
- ^ "Italy convicts Nazis of massacre". BBC News. 2007-01-13. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6259987.stm. Retrieved 2007-01-15.
Sources
- Marzabotto: The Crimes of Walter Reder - SS-Sturmbannführer, by Christian Ortner (Vienna, 1985)
- Silence on Monte Sole, by Jack Olsen (New York, 1968) ISBN 0-213-17794-3
External links
Coordinates: 44°18′37″N 11°13′11″E / 44.31028°N 11.21972°E
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