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May 8, 2025 48 mins

Nazi and Italian Fascist troops committed more than 200 civilian massacres in WW II in Italy between July of 1944 and April of 1945. Few were held accountable for the cold-blooded murders, especially in Italy. Eighty years later the issue festers as Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni's political party Brothers of Italy has neo-fascist roots linked to Hitler's ally Benito Mussolini. He ruled Italy for two decades before he was killed by Italian freedom fighters at the end of WW II.

Carlo Gentile, an Italian native and history professor at the University of Cologne in Germany, explains his ongoing work to give closure to the thousands of massacre victims and their families as well as help Italians confront their WW II past. He also explains the complex Italian Fascist resistance movement that evolved during WW II including when Allied Forces fought a bloody battle to drive the Nazis and Italian Fascists from power in Italy.

In addition, Udo Surer, the son of a Nazi soldier, who participated in one of the civilian massacres in an Italian village, explains the peach and reconciliation campaign he began after he discovered his father's past.

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