Bologna remembers the bombing; Meloni: 'Ferocious terrorism.' Families: 'Neo-fascist matrix from sentences'

Bologna is commemorating the 46th anniversary of the devastating bombing at its train station on August 2, 1980, an event that claimed the lives of 85 people and injured over two hundred. A procession marked the solemn occasion, with national leaders reflecting on the attack's enduring impact.

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The profound mark left by the Bologna station bombing of August 2, 1980, is etched in the republican history and the conscience of Italians.

President Sergio Mattarella described the bombing as leaving a "profound mark" on Italy's republican history and conscience. He spoke of the "infinite pain" for the "defenseless victims" and the "dismay" caused by the destruction, emphasizing that the "neo-fascist strategy of terror" aimed to undermine Italy's values of freedom, justice, and democracy.

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The neo-fascist strategy of terror sought to destroy the values of freedom, justice, and democracy.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni characterized the attack as one of the nation's "darkest and most dramatic pages," calling it "ferocious terrorism" that "struck the nation's heart." She joined the families of the victims and the people of Bologna in commemorating the day of sorrow.

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46 years ago, terrorism struck one of its most ferocious blows. It struck the nation's heart with an attack that disintegrated Bologna station, killing 85 people and injuring over two hundred.

Paolo Lambertini, president of the association of victims' families, responded to Meloni's remarks, stating that judicial rulings have illuminated the "neo-fascist matrix" of the bombing. He urged for the continuation of the search for complete truth, a sentiment echoed by Senate President Ignazio La Russa, who stressed the duty to remember and seek full clarity. Democratic Party secretary Elly Schlein added that those in government must understand the country's history and fully implement court sentences that have established the bombing's neo-fascist origins and its connection to "deviated apparatuses."

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For the Bologna bombing, there is an extraordinary light, given by the court rulings, which has illuminated the dark page to which the Prime Minister refers and shown its neo-fascist matrix.