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August 12, 2020 "It must never be forgotten that the will to power can go so far as to produce an ideology of annihilation of those who are different, strangers, seen as potentially enemies. It should not be forgotten that those who underestimate violence, in the end become accomplices . Regurgitations of intolerance, racial hatred and fanaticism should not be ignored, which also manifest themselves in our societies and in the world, sometimes through modern tools and unprecedented methods. The memory of the most tragic and painful events in our history constitutes an incessant reminder for consciences ". It is part of the message that the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, sent on the occasion of the 76th anniversary of the Nazi massacre of Sant'Anna di Stazzema, in the province of Lucca."On 12 August 76 years ago - recalls Mattarella - the hamlets of Stazzema became the scene of the most inhuman outrage: the massacre of hundreds and hundreds of unarmed civilians, especially women, children, the elderly, refugees. It was one of the most heinous massacres carried out in our country during the Nazi occupation for the frightening numbers of the massacre, for the cruelty with which the SS men attacked lifeless bodies, for the havoc of the stake in the square of Sant'Anna ".
That morning, three SS departments went up to Sant'Anna, while a fourth closed all escape routes: the military killed hundreds of unarmed civilians - only 350 were identified - including 65 children.
The president recalled that "today is a day of recollection and remembrance for the Republic" and that "a strong, indissoluble feeling of solidarity unites us to the survivors, to the families of those killed without mercy, to the citizens of Stazzema who have rebuilt the community, enduring the pain and keeping the memory ".