Dozens of men in Italy were seen presenting a fascist salute in honor of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini on the 79th anniversary of his execution.
Dressed in black, several neo-fascist supporters gathered in Dongo and Giulino di Mezzegra to shout fascist chants during Sunday’s ceremonies.
The men marched through the northern Italian towns where Mussolini was arrested and executed at the end of World War II, and also in Predappio, the famous dictator’s birthplace and final resting place.
The despot was arrested by anti-fascist partisans in Dongo, near Lake Como, on April 27, 1945, while trying to escape to Switzerland with his lover, Clara Petacci, after the Allied liberation of Italy.
On April 28, Mussolini, 62, and Petacci were executed and their bodies taken to Meezzegra-Giulino to be hanged in the city’s central square, just two days before Hitler’s suicide.
Dozens of men raise their arms in a fascist salute and shout the fascist chant “present” in Dongo, northern Italy, during ceremonies honoring Italian dictator Benito Mussolini on the 79th anniversary of his execution.
Dressed in black, neo-fascist supporters marched through the northern Italian cities where Mussolini was arrested and executed at the end of World War II.
About 100 men reportedly sang the famous Bella Ciao song during the ceremony.
Today, a swarm of neo-fascists stormed the Dongo and placed 15 roses in the lake in memory of the ministers and officials of Mussolini’s government who were murdered there, according to images of the event.
After a rendition of Taps, the leader of the celebrations shouted “Comrade Benito Mussolini” and the crowd raised their hands in a fascist salute while chanting “presente.”
Images taken from Sunday’s event show police vehicles spread throughout the areas where protesters were present in an apparent attempt to break up large groups.
About 100 men reportedly sang the famous Bella Ciao song during the ceremony.
The fascist dictator had ruled for two decades in Italy before attempting to flee the country disguised as a German soldier with his lover, when the communists of the Garibaldi Brigade recognized him and captured him.
With the execution of Mussolini, the partisans took revenge for two decades of fascist tyranny and five years of world war that would last for several months.
The bloody clashes claimed the lives of more than 400,000 Italian civilians, as well as those who were killed and maimed by the Italians in their imperial campaigns in Libya and Ethiopia, as well as in the Spanish Civil War.
The anniversary of the tyrant’s execution fell on the same day that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Melloni led her far-right Brothers of Italy party at an election rally in the city of Pescara.
Benito Mussolini (left) and Adolf Hitler (right) in Berlin, undated. Mussolini raises his arm in a Nazi salute
A swarm of neo-fascists stormed the Dongo and placed 15 roses in the lake in memory of the ministers and officials of Mussolini’s government who were murdered there.
Police were seen in areas where protesters were present in an apparent attempt to break up large groups.
Dressed in black, several neo-fascist supporters gathered in Dongo and Giulino di Mezzegra to shout fascist chants during Sunday’s ceremonies.
The party’s roots date back to the Italian Social Movement (MSI), founded by a chief of staff in Mussolini’s government in 1946.
The MSI then slowly attracted fascist sympathizers and officials to its ranks after the demise of Mussolini.
Meloni joined the youth wing of the MSI as a teenager, but has since sought to distance the party from its neo-fascist roots.
The prime minister condemned fascism’s stronghold on democracy and insisted that the Italian right has dominated the left for decades.
On Sunday, Meloni stated that the left is today a more totalitarian threat to the country.
He noted that members of the Communist Party had lodged a formal complaint about the tent structures built on Pescara beach to host the Brotherhood of Italy rally, during which Meloni announced he would lead the party’s campaign ahead of the election. to the European Parliament in June.
“I note that the Communist Party still exists, and I say this to show where those nostalgic for totalitarianism are today in Italy,” he said.
In October 2022, scenes similar to those seen on the streets of Italy on Sunday occurred as the country marked 100 years since the beginning of Mussolini’s dictatorship.
Up to 4,000 supporters marched to the despot’s crypt and raised their hands in salute to mark the anniversary.
With shouts of ‘Duce, Duce, Duce’ – Mussolini’s honorific – the crowd descended on the dictator’s birthplace with fascist flags and black shirts.
Addressing the crowd, Mussolini’s great-granddaughter Orsola said at the time: “After 100 years, we are still here to pay tribute to the man this State loved and whom we will never stop admiring.”
