Italy compensates victims of Nazi war crimes

(CLO) The Italian government has just paid 800,000 euros in compensation to the family of a victim named Metello Ricciarini in the massacre of civilians carried out by Nazi German troops in Tuscany in 1944.

The decision is a landmark one, marking a significant shift in Italy's approach to World War II crimes, and could set a precedent for other victims' families.

The attic of the church of San Gioacchino. Photo: REUTERS/Yara Nardi

On June 29, 1944, in the village of Civitella in Val di Chiana, about 220 km from Rome, Metello Ricciarini and 243 innocent people were murdered in a revenge attack by Nazi Germany.

“Our family is very pleased to have received the compensation from the Ministry of Economy last week,” said lawyer Roberto Alboni, nephew of the victim Ricciarini, who said the family had fought for two decades to achieve this recognition.

In 1962, Germany paid Italy 40 million marks (equivalent to more than 1 billion euros today) in reparations for the damage caused to the Italian state and people by Nazi Germany during World War II. However, this agreement shifted responsibility for compensation for individual victims to the Italian government, and for decades afterward, no action was taken.

In 2022, then-Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi set up a €61 million fund to meet growing claims from victims and their descendants. The Nazis often received support from Italian fascists during the massacres.

"This is an important first result in the fight to raise awareness about reparations for the descendants of victims of Nazi crimes," said Senator Dario Parrini of the opposition Democratic Party, who has been closely following the issue.

A 2016 German government-funded study estimated that around 22,000 Italians were victims of Nazi war crimes, including up to 8,000 Jews who were deported to death camps. Thousands more Italians were forced into slave labor in Germany.

Hong Hanh (according to Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/lan-dau-tien-y-boi-thuong-cho-nan-nhan-duoi-thoi-phat-xit-post324242.html