Post Numéro: 7 de Enrico Cernuschi 30 Mai 2005, 19:26
Monsieur le Marèchal, Raca,
the anti-semitic laws had almost no application in Libya al long as Balbo was the governor there (he and Federzoni had been the only members of the Gran Consiglio to oppose, in Oct. 1938, the future laws); after his death the a.m. laws had no particoular effect, except for the decision, estabilished during Summer 1942, to send in Tripolitania the majority of the Jews families living in Cyrenaica as they were indicatted by the public opinon to have joined the British during the two previous occupation of these provincies granting them intelligence for the rounding up and other kind of support, not to mention many acts of pillage in Dec 1941- Jan 1942 leading the native Arabs who had preferred, during the first invasion, to remain quiet fearing new very hard represails if the Italinas would come back. Only five families at Bengasi were discriminate.
In Egypt the local Jews communities were not disturbed during the 1940-1942 times portion of that country were occupied. The Germans too remained quiet as the administrative control wa sin Italian hands; they did not anything, anyway, even during the advances.
In Tunisia the local SS respinsable after the Nov. 1942 landings, Walter Rauff (the same who presieded the SS anti-Jew activity in Milan after the Italian armistice of 8 Sept. 1943) tried to deporte some thousands of members of the local community, but Adm. Luigi Biancheri, naval commaned at Bizerte since Dec. 1943 to Feb. 1943 refused to grant any help for shipping even if the freighters were coming back Italy empty and did not allow the use of German ships too for this purpose as they were, anyway, under his orders.
Rauff charged again abd was repelled in such an harsh way by the Italian naval command it was necessary to remove Biancheri on late Feb. 1943 as he had expressed louding (as usual with his carachter, quite famous in the Regia Marina) in a too much clear way his opinion about the Nazies and their clowns uniforms.
The following Italian Naval comamnder in Tunisia was a litte more diplomatic but adamant again. No deportation. Luftwaffe refused too to help as they had no space and so everything Rauff could do was to obtain a gold payment. As the air lift was considered too much dangerous by the SS commands the stolen gold had to follow the sea route. The Italian navy again refused to freight the prize and it was necessary to use a German MPF. The Naval Bizerte command, anyway, did not allow, in April 1943, the craft to sail within an escorted convoy. The MPF had to leave with a sister ship but this last was unable to sail for machinery problems and the landing craft sailed, at least, alone on 26 April 1943. She was sunk that same night by the British MTB 635. No surviviors are mentioned in the records.
By the way the Italian East Africa was exempted, since the beginning until the last Italian day there, in Nov. 1941, by the anti Jewery laws.
The pogroms at Tripoli since March 1943 until 1947 were, at least, British initiatives.
You may read, about this subject, Renzo DE Felice, Storia degli ebrei italiani sotto il fascismo, ed. Mondadori, 1977 and Denti di Pirajino La mia seconda educazione inglese, ed. Longanesi, 1968.
Salut les gars et Dieu merci pour la France et le voix du 29 Mai 2005.
EC