Mattarella Pays Tribute to Italian Troops Who Resisted Nazi Forces

Rome: President Sergio Mattarella paid tribute to the Italian troops who were interned in Nazi camps after refusing to join the forces of the Republic of Sal² puppet regime during World War II after Italy signed an armistice with the Allies in September 1943. “We are in debt for the freedom we enjoy today to the courage of the Italian soldiers who said no to the Germans after September 8 (1943),” Mattarella said at a ceremony at the Quirinal Palace for the National Day of Military Internees in German Concentration Camps during World War II.

According to Ansa News Agency, Mattarella highlighted the sacrifice of these “patriots who were stripped of their very identity in the German camps and reduced to a mere number.” He emphasized how, in the barracks, soldiers began to weave threads of solidarity and a collective ethic, which later became the foundation for a new beginning for Italy. The ceremony was an homage to the Italian servicemen’s refusal to succumb to Nazi-Fascism, acknowledging the high personal price they paid and the erasure of their heroic resistance at the war’s end.

Following the 1943 armistice, over 600,000 Italian soldiers refused to join the Nazi German forces and were therefore classified as Italian Military Internees (IMIs) by the Wehrmacht. Deprived of the rights afforded to Prisoners of War under the Geneva Convention, these men faced forced labour, inhumane conditions, mass starvation, and other abuses in camps across Germany and occupied territories. The harsh conditions led to approximately 50,000 dying or being murdered during their internment.

Their unique status as “internees” from an allied state allowed the Nazis to exploit their labour without adhering to international law, which has prompted post-war efforts to acknowledge their forgotten plight. Mattarella’s tribute serves as a reminder of the courage and resilience of these soldiers and their significant role in Italy’s history.