The post sparked immediate criticism from academics and opposition parties on social media.
The left-populist party 5Star Movement of former Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte issued a statement critical of the defense ministry’s portrayal of the fallen soldiers as the freedom fighters.
“The Ministry of Defense celebrates on X the fallen of El-Alamein by talking about valor, sacrifice, heroism and courage — all true — but inappropriately juxtaposes their memory with that of those who died fighting for freedom, to say the least. The memory of those 17,000 fallen Italians should be honored, certainly, but as victims of the bellicist and colonialist adventurism of the fascist regime,” said the statement.
Mario Macis, a professor of economics at John Hopkins University, said that the Italians during the battle fought “to suppress the freedom of others.”
“There is nothing to be proud of, only cause for shame and the need to apologize,” Macis wrote in a post on X.
Brothers of Italy, the ruling party led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, traces its roots back to the Italian Social Movement (MSI), a group that was formed by ex-fascists after World War II. While Meloni has rejected the claims that the party is a home to neofascists and tried to move her party away from the political fringes, scandals continue to plague the party.
It is also not the first time the country’s defense ministry has come under scrutiny. Back in January, it prompted public outcry after it published a calendar that honored soldiers for heroism while fighting for Mussolini’s regime.
