Patterns of Global Terrorism 2003 - Italy
| Publisher | United States Department of State |
| Author | Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism |
| Publication Date | 29 April 2004 |
| Cite as | United States Department of State, Patterns of Global Terrorism 2003 - Italy, 29 April 2004, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/468107cf19.html [accessed 17 September 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Italy has been an active partner in the war against terror, providing its only carrier battle group – more than 13 percent of its naval forces – to support combat operations in the North Arabian Sea for use in Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). The "De La Penne" group (a destroyer and a frigate) relieved the carrier battle group on 15 March 2002. In addition to the 350 Italian troops serving as part of the International Security and Assistance Force in Afghanistan, the Italian Parliament agreed in October to send some 1,000 soldiers to support OEF and deployed troops shortly thereafter. The Italian Air Force has been flying sorties out of Manas Airbase, and Italian engineers helped repair a runway at Bagram Airfield.
Italian police arrested several suspected terrorists and disrupted potential attacks against the United States and its allies. In May, Italian police in Milan arrested five individuals who were suspected of providing funds to al-Qaida. In October, Italian authorities arrested four Tunisians for document forgery; they may have also been planning to conduct a terrorist attack in Europe, possibly in France.
Italy prosecuted several al-Qaida-affiliated individuals, putting on trial three North Africans suspected of providing logistics support to the group. In February, a judge in Milan sentenced four members of the Tunisian Combatant Group to up to five years in jail for providing false documentation and planning to acquire and transport arms and other illegal goods. Italian authorities also suspect the group was planning a terrorist attack against the US Embassy in Rome. This was the first time al-Qaida associates were convicted in Europe since 11 September 2001.
In August, working with the US Treasury Department, Italian authorities froze the assets of 25 individuals and organizations designated by the United States under Executive Order 13224. Eleven were individuals connected to the Salafist Group for Call and Combat, while 14 were organizations linked to two known al-Qaida-linked financiers, Ahmed Idris Nasreddin and Youssef Nada.
A variety of leftwing terrorist groups carried out attacks in Italy. In March, the recently resurgent Red Brigades-Communist Combatant Party (BR-PCC) was accused of assassinating Marco Biagi, an advisor to the Italian Labor Ministry. Several other groups, including the Anti-Imperialist Territorial Nuclei, the 20 July Brigades, and the Proletarian Nuclei for Communism, claimed responsibility for numerous small-scale attacks throughout Italy.
Italy is a party to 10 of the 12 international conventions and protocols relating to terrorism.