Ganser - Ch1 - A Terrorist Attack in Italy Pp3-14

8/11/2019 Ganser - Ch1 - A Terrorist Attack in Italy Pp3-14

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hundred underground arsenals of the &'(O-lin)ed stay-%ehind secret army that' (11O1IS( '(('C2 I& I('+Y

in Italy was code-named Gladio# the sword. Casson found that the Italian military

secret service and the government at the time had gone to great lengths in order to)eep the (rieste discovery and a%ove all its larger strategic context a secret.

's Casson continued to investigate the mysterious cases of /eteano and (rieste*

he discovered with surprise that not the Italian left %ut Italian right-wing groups

and the military secret service had %een involved in the /eteano terror. Casson*s

investigation revealed that the right-wing organisation Ordine &uovo had

colla%orated very closely with the Italian 3ilitary Secret Service* SI !ServiDioInformaDioni ifesa". (ogether they had engineered the /eteano terror and then

wrongly %lamed the militant extreme Italian left* the 1ed Brigades. ?udge Casson

identified Ordine &uovo mem%er incenDo inciguerra as the man who had

planted the /eteano %om%. Being the last man in a long chain of command*

inciguerra was arrested years after the crime. ,e confessed and testified that he

had %een covered %y an entire networ) of sympathisers in Italy and a%road who

had ensured that after the attac) he could escape. *' whole mechanism came into

action** inciguerra recalled* *that is* the Cara%inieri# the 3inister of the Interior* the

customs services and the military and civilian intelligence services accepted

the ideological reasoning %ehind the attac)*. 2

inciguerra was right to point out that the /eteano terror had occurred during a

particularl y agitated historical period. $ith the %eginning of the flower powerrevolution* the mass student protests against violence in general and the war inietnam in particular* the ideological %attle %etween the political left and the

political right had intensif ied in $estern urope and the 0nited States in the late56E;65 acts of violence with a political

motivation** Italian Senator Giovanni /ellegrino* president of Italy*s parliamentarycommission investigating Gladio and the massacres* recalled the very violent

period of Italy* s most recent history. *It is may%e worth remem%ering that theseFactsF have left %ehind >65 dead and 55=5 inAured and maimed. :igures of a

war# with no parallel in any other uropean country.*4:ollowing the /iaDDa

:ontana massacre of 56E6 and the /eteano terrorist attac) of 5678* prominent

massacres in Italy included a %om% which on 3ay 8=* 567> exploded in Brescia

in the midst of an anti-:ascist demonstration* )illing eight and inAuring andmaiming 5


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prot ected them. 's the /iaDDa :ont ana ter ror was years later trac ed hac) to the I talian righ t* Ordine &uovo mem%er :ranco :reda was uestioned whether' (11O1IS( '(('C2 I& I('+Y

in retrospect he feels that powerful people higher up in the hierarchy includingGenerals and 3inisters had manipulated him. :reda* a declared admirer of ,itler

who had pu%lished *3ein 2ampf* in Italian in his own small pu%lishing house*

replied that according to his understanding no%ody can escape manipulation*(he life of every one is manipulated %y those with more power*. right-wing

terrorist :reda declared. *In my case I accept that I have %een a puppet in thehands of ideas* %ut not in the hands of men from the secret services here Hin Italy

or a%road. (hat is to say that I have voluntarily fought my own war* following the

strategic design that came from my own ideas. (hat is all.* ;

In 3arch 8


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' (11O1IS( '(('C2 I& I('+Y

Is inciguerra thus a credi%le sourceJ (he events following the trial suggest

that he is. (hesecret army was discovered in 566 the Italian investigating Audge Giovanni (am%urino in the course

of his investigation into right-wing terrorism in Italy had ta)en the unprecedented

step of arresting General ito 3iceli* the chief of the Italian military secret

service SI on the charge of *promoting* setting up# and organising* together

with others* a secret association of military and civilians aimed at provo)ing an

armed insurrection to %ring a%out an illegal change in the constitution of the

state and the form of government*. 55

3iceli* previously responsi%le for the &'(O Security Office* on trial on

&ovem%er 57* 567> furiously revealed the existence of the Gladio army hidden

as a special %ranch of the military secret service SI *' Super SI on myordersJ Of courseK But I have not organised it myself to ma)e a coup d*tat. (his

was the 0nited States and &'(O who as)ed me to do itK* 58 $ith his excellenttransatlantic contacts 3iceli got off lightly. ,e was released on %ail and spent six

months in a military hospital. :orced %y the investigations of ?udge Casson*

/rime 3inister 'ndreotti 5E years later exposed the Gladio secret in front of the

Italian parliament. (his angered 3iceli greatly. Shortly %efore his death inOcto%er 66< he shouted @I have gone to prison %ecause I did not want to reveal

the existence of this super secret organisation. 'nd now 'ndreotti comes alongand tells it to /arliamentK* 54

In prison /eteano %om%er inciguerra explained to Audge Casson that not onlyOrdine &uovo %ut also other prominent Italian right-wing organisations such as

'vanguardia &aDionale had cooperated with the military secret service and the

Gladio secret army to wea)en the political left in Italy *(he terrorist line was

followed %y camouflaged people* people %elonging to the security apparatus* orthose lin)ed to the state apparatus through rapport or colla%oration. I say that

every single outrage that followed from 56E6 fitted into a single organisedmatrix. * 1ight-wing terrorist and Ordine &uovo mem%er inciguerra explained

that he and his fellow right-wing extremists had %een recruited to cooperate with

the Gladio secret army to carry out the most %loody operations @'vanguardia

&aDionale* li)e Ordine &uovo* were %eing mo%ilised into the %attle as part of ananti-Communist strategy originating not with organisations deviant from the

institutions of power. %ut from the state itself* and specifically from within theam%it of the state*s relations within the 'tlantic 'lliance.* 5>

?udge Casson was alarmed at what he had found. In an attempt to eradicate thisrotten core of the state he followed the traces of the mysterious Gladio under-

ground a r m y w h i c h had manipulated Italian politics during the Cold $ar andin

' (11O1IS( '(('C2 I& I('+Y

?anuary 566< reuested permission from the highest Italian authorities toextend his research to the archives of the Italian military secret service ServiDio

informaDioni sicureDDa 3ilitare !SIS3I"* until 567= )nown as SI. In ?uly566


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source %y any standards. 't the time of his testimony he loo)ed hac) on a lifelong' (11O1IS( '(('C2 5& I('+Y

political career with pro%a%ly no parallels in any country of $estern urope. 's

the leading representative of the conservative Christian emocratic /arty

!emocraDia Cristiana Italiana* CI"* which had functioned as a %ulwar) against

the /CI during the entire Cold $ar* 'ndreotti had enAoyed the support of the

0nited States. ,e personally )new all 0S presidents* and %y many within and

outside Italy was considered to %e the most powerful politician of Italy*s :irst

1epu%lic !56>;-5664".

'lthough the governments in Italy*s fragile :irst 1epu%lic had changed inshort intervals 'ndreotti throughout the Cold $ar had cunningly managed to

remain in power in numerous coalitions and had thus esta%lished himself as the

dominant presence in the Italian government residence at /alaDDo Chigi in 1ome.

Born in 1ome in 5656* 'ndreotti %ecame 3inister of the Interior at the age of 4;*

and thereafter esta%lished an unprecedented record %y holding the office of /rime

3inister seven times* and serving furthermore 85 times as 3inister* of

which six times as :oreign 3inister. ,is admirers compared him with ?ulius

Cesar and called him *divine Giulio** while his critics have accused him of %eing

the uintessential %ac)-room wheeler-dealer and nic)named him *the uncle*.

'llegedly 'ndreotti*s favourite gangster movie was *Good fellows* for 1o%ert

e &iro*s line *never rat on your friends and always )eep your mouth shut*.

3ost agreed that it was part of 'ndreotti*s strategy which had allowed divineGiulio to survive a large num%er of Italy*s intrigues and crimes* many of which

he was directly involved in. 5=

By exposing Operation Gladio and the secret armies of &'(O *the uncle* had

%ro)en his silence. 's the :irst 1epu%lic collapsed with the end of the Cold $ar*powerful 'ndreotti* then an old man* was dragged in front of numerous cour ts in

Italy which accused him of having manipulated the political institutions* of

having cooperated with the mafia and of having given secret orders according

to which opponents were assassinated. *(he ?ustice system has gone craDy**acting Italian /rime 3inister Silvio Berlusconi shouted when in &ovem%er

8 as acting efence 3inister 'ndreotti had

gone on the

' (11O1IS( '(('C2 I& I('+Y

record stating to a Audicial inuiry investigating right-wing massacres *I can say

that the head of the secret services has repeatedly and uneuivocally excluded the

existence of a hidden organisation of any type or siDe.* 56In 567= he made a similar

testimony in front of Audges investigating a right-wing %om%ing in 3ilan.

$hen the Italian press revealed that the secret Gladio army* far from having

%een closed down in 5678 was still active 'ndreotti*s lie collapsed. (hereafter in

'ugust and Septem%er 566


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On Octo%er 8> Senator Gualtieri had 'ndreotti*s report on the */arallel SI*%ac) in his hands. Shortened %y two pages this final version was now only

ten

A TERRORIST ATTACK IN ITALY

pages long. Senator Gualtier i compared it with the photocopies made of the first

version and immediately noted that sensitive parts especially on the international

connection and similar secret organisations in other countries had %een cut out.:urthermore the secret parallel organisation* which %efore had %een spo)en of in

the present tense implying continuous existence* was now spo)en of in the past

tense. (he aw)ward strategy of 'ndreotti to send in a document* withdraw andamend it* only to provide it anew* could thus hide nothing. O%servers agreed that

the manoeuvre necessarily drew attention exactly to the amended parts* hence theinternational dimension of the affair* in order to ta)e away some weight from

'ndreotti*s shoulders. But no international support was forthcoming.

In his final report 'ndreotti explained that Gladio had %een conceived as a

networ) of clandestine resistance within &'(O countries to confront an eventual

Soviet invasion. 'fter the war the Italian military secret service ServiDio di

InformaDioni delle :orDe 'rmate !SI:'1" predecessor of the SI* and the CI' had

signed *an accord relative to the Forganisation and activity of the post-occupation

clandestine networ)F* an accord commonly referred to as Stay Behind* in which all

preceding commitments relevant to matters concerning Italy and the 0nited States

were reconfirmed*. (he cooperation %etween the CI' and the Italian military

secret service* as 'ndreotti explained in the document* was supervised and

coordinated %y secret non-orthodox warfare centres of &'(O *Once the clandestineresistance organisation was constituted* Italy was called upon to participate...in the

wor)s of the CC/ !Clandestine /lanning Committee" of 56;6* operating within the

am%it of S,'/ H&'(O*s Supreme ,eaduarters 'llied /owers urope ...9 in

56E> the Italian secret service also entered the 'CC !'llied Clandestine

Committee".* 84

(he secret Gladio army* as 'ndreotti revealed* was well armed. (he euipment

provided %y the CI' was %uried in 546 hiding spots across the country in forests*meadows and even under churches and cemeteries. 'ccording to the

explanations of 'ndreotti the Gladio caches included *porta%le arms*

ammunition* explosives* hand grenades* )nives and daggers* E'ndreotti*s sensational testimony did not only lead to an outcry

concerning the corruption of the government and the CI' among the press andthe population* %ut also to a hunt for the secret arms caches. /adre Giuciano

recalls the day when the press came to search for the hidden Gladio secrets inhis church with am%iguous feelings @I was forewarned in the afternoon when

two Aournalists from F55 GaDDettinoF as)ed me if I )new anything a%out arms

deposits here at the church. (hey started to dig right here and found two %oxes

right away. (hen the text also said a thirty centimetres from the window. So theycame over here and dug down. One %ox was )ept aside %y them %ecause it

contained a phosphorous %om%. (hey sent the Cara%inieri outside whilst twoexperts opened this %ox* another had two machine guns in it. 'll the guns were

new* in perfect shape. (hey had never %een used.* 25

Contrary to the testimony of right-wing terrorist inciguerra of the 56=


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A T E R R O R I S T A T T A C K I N I T A L Y

the amusement of the Italian pu%lic stressed that there was a difference %etween what

he )new as former efence Secretary and what he )new as former /rime 3inister.

Only :rancesco Cossiga* Italian /resident since 56=;* proudly confirmed his

part in the conspiracy. uring an official vis it he paid to Scotland he pointed out

that he was *proud and happy* for his %it in setting the secret army up as Aunior

efence 3inister of the CI in the 56;; years.* 48$ith his em%racement of the

compromised army lin)ed to terrorism the /resident upon his return to Italy

found himself in the midst of a political storm and reuests across parties for his

immediate resignation or for his impeachment for high treason. ?udge Casson was

audacious enough to as) head of state Cossiga to testify in front of the investigating

Senate committee. Yet the /resident# no longer happy# angrily refused and threatened

to close down the entire parliamentary Gladio investigation *I*ll send the law

extending its mandate %ac) to /arliament and* should they re-approve it* I will

have to examine the text anew to see if the conditions exist for the extreme

recourse to an a%solute I/residentiall refusal to promulgate.*44 (he attac) was

completely without any constitutional grounds and critics started to uestion the

/resident*s sanity. Cossiga stepped down from the /residency in 'pril 5668 three

months %efore his term expired.4>

In a pu%lic speech in front of the Italian Senate on &ovem%er 6* 566 he as well had discovered a secret &'(O structure in Greece

very similar to the Italian Gladio which he had ordered to dissolve. /assionate

calls for a parliamentary investigation of the secret army and its suspected


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&O(S

INTRODUCTION

1 British daiy The Times'No!em"er 1#$ 1##%&2 British daiy The Observer'No!em"er 1'$ 1##%&

1 ( T)RRORI*T (TT(C+ IN IT(,-1 British daily The Observer,November 18' 1990.2 .ugh %$ *haughnessy$ Gladio: Europe's best kept secret.They were the

agents who were to $stay "ehind$ i/ the Red (rmy o!erran0estern )urope& But the networ that was set up with the "est

intentions degenerated in some ountries into a /ront /orterrorism and /arright poitia agitation& In British daiyThe Observer'une 6$ 1##2&

3 *eret ser!ie researhers 7a"ri8io Ca!i and 7rederi ,aurentprodued pro"a"y the "est doumentary on the 9ia88a 7ontanaterror Piazza Fontana: Storia di un Complotto"roadasted on Deem"er11$ 1##6 at '5% p&m& on the Itaian state tee!ision Rai Due& (ndshown again in its 7renh !ersion L' Orchestre Noir: La Strategic de latension in two "os on Tuesday$ anuary 13$ 1##'$ and0ednesday$ anuary 14$ 1##'$ at 2%45 on 7renh Channe (rte&In their doumentary they :uestion a arge num"er o/ witnessesinuding the ;udges that /or years in!estigated the massares$


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Italia e sulle cause della mancata individuazione dei responsabili delle stragi: II

terrorismo, le stragi ed it contest storico-politico.$he nal re*ort o5 theommission 6as *ublished under this title in 1997.

' British daiy tee!ision news program Newsnighton BBC1on (pri 4> 1##1& # British daiy The Observer'une 6$ 1##2&

NOT)*1% )d& ?uiamy> Secretagents, freemasons,

fascists . . and a top-level

campaignofpolitical

'destabilisation': 'Strategy

of tension' that brought

carnage and cover-up.

,n% British daily TheGuardian,eember 7'1990.

11 British *olitialma"aine Statewatch,

:anuary 1991.12 ean7ranoisBro88u


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7erraresi :uotesdirety /rom thedoument (ndreottihad handed o!er tothe pariamentary

ommission& TheItaian daiy L' Unitapu"ished "oth therst and the seond!ersion o/(ndreotti$sdoument in aspeia edition onNo!em"er 14$ 1##%&(so ean 7ranoisBro88u 2%%%&NOT)*2 ( *C(ND(,

*.OC+* 0)*T)RN)URO9)

I The oaitioninuded +uwait& theUnited *tates$ *audi(ra"ia$ *yria$ Oman> Gatar$Bahrain$ United (ra")mirates> Israe&(/ghanistan>Bangadesh$Canada$ Begium$


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C8ehoso!aia$ Itay$Niger$ Romania and*outh +orea& On

No!em"er 2#> 1##%the UN *eurityCouni issued withresoution 6' anutimatum andauthorised the/ores ooperatingwith +uwait to use$a neessary means&&& to restore wordpeae andinternationaseurity in thearea$$ i/ Ira: shoudnot withdraw /rom

+uwait untianuary 15$ 1##1&(s *addam .usseindid not respet theUN utimatumOperation Desert*torm under U*ommand "eganwith a massi!e airatta on anuary16$ 1##1 /oowedon 7e"ruary 24 "ythe in!asion o/ aiedand /ores& TheIra:i /ores were

:uiy de/eated andon 7e"ruary 26$+uwait City wasi"erated& The/oowing day aoaition ghtingended& (s many as1%%$%%% Ira:i troopsare estimated toha!e died whiedeaths o/ oaitiontroops totaed a"out36%& On @arh 3$1##1 Ira: aepted

the easere and*addam .usseinremained in power&

2 ,eo @uer$ Gladio. DasErbe des Kalten Krieges.

Der NATO Geheimbundand sein deutscherVorlauferA.amurgRowoht$ 1## I "* p&26&

3 No author speied$Spinne unterm Schafsfell.

In Sdeuropa war die

Guerillatruppe besondersaktiv auch bei den

Militrputschen in

Griechenland und der

Trkei?In


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Das blutige Schwert der

CIA. Nachrichten aus dem

Kalten Krieg: In ganz

Europa gibt es geheime

NATO Kommandos, die

dem Feind aus dem Ostenwiderstehen sollen. Kanzler,

Verteidigungsminister und

Bundeswehrgenerale

wussten angeblich von

nichts. Die Spuren fhren

nach Pullach, zur 'stay-

behind organisation' des

Bundesnachrichtendienstes

.In 1##%&British daiy TheGuardian'No!em"er14$ 1##%&

1' Compare Gladio'p& 141&1# British daiy TheGuardian'No!em"er 14>1##%&


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&O(S

8< 1ichard &orton (aylor* Secret Italian unit 'trained in Britain'.In British daily The

Guardian'&ovem%er 57 * 566

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Ganser - Ch1 - A Terrorist Attack in Italy Pp3-14