Porzûs massacre

The Porzûs massacre (Italian: Eccidio di Porzûs) was an episode of the Italian resistance during late World War II, occurring on 7 February 1945. It saw the process and the execution of several partisans belonging to the Brigata Osoppo, a formation of Catholic inspiration, by Communist partisans of the Gruppi di Azione Patriottica. The event is still the object of studies and controversies in Italy.^[1]

History

On 7 February 1945 a group of communist partisans belonging to the Gruppi di azione patriottica (GAP), led by Mario Toffanin (codename: Giacca), reached the command of the Group of the Eastern Brigade of the partisan division Osoppo, near the malghe of Porzûs, in the comune of Faedis, eastern Friuli, with the goal to arrest and execute their members.

Toffanin accused the Osoppo brigade of hindering the collaboration with the Yugoslavian partisans, led by Josip Broz Tito, of having failed to distribute to the other partisans weapons sent by the Allies and, above all, of having had contacts with the army of the fascist government, in particular Decima Flottiglia MAS and the Alpine regiment "Tagliamento", in the attempt to avoid the annexation of Friuli Venezia Giulia and Istria to Yugoslavia.

According to the directives of the General Command of the Corpo volontari della libertà del Nord Italia ("Volunteer Corps for Freedom Northern Italy"), issued in October 1944, any collaboration with soldiers of the Italian Social Republic (RSI) (the fascist puppet-state established by the Germans in northern Italy) was considered as treason, and thus to be punished with shooting. The brigade Osoppo had given shelter to Elda Turchetti, a young woman who had been listed by BBC radio among German spies.^[2] Incidentally this young whoman had been handed over to Osoppo by Giacca in order to be examined and eventually put to death. She had been found not guilty. In fact BBC radio was not always fully reliable in this kind of information.

References

1. ^ Page on gazzettino.it
2. ^ Giovanni Di Capua, Resistenzialismo versus Resistenza, Rubbettino Editore srl, 2005, ISBN 9788849811971, pag 110