More than 11.000 soldiers during the holidays in operations abroad and on the national territory, between the COVID emergency and support for citizens
In a 2020 that is now at an end, the work of the men and women of the Army continues unabated, both in Italy and in international missions abroad.
Over 3.000 Italian soldiers, coming from every department of the Army's operational or logistic area, are employed in dozens of UN, NATO and European Union-led missions and are operating in various crisis theaters. On the other hand, more than 7.000 soldiers are currently operating on the national territory in support of citizens and local institutions, in competition activities following public disasters (among these the activities aimed at facing the epidemiological emergency in progress) and in support to the police forces in the fight against crime and in the prevention of possible terrorist attacks.
With the use of operational, specialist and logistic assets abroad, as well as through its own advisors military, deputies to advise and train the Armed Forces of countries that are in crisis situations, this year too the Army has provided its contribution in the construction of those conditions of security and development whose lack causes instability of many areas and regions considered strategic for Italy.
In Afghanistan, the command of the contingent deployed in Herat is entrusted to the "Julia" Alpine Brigade, while for a few weeks, at the NATO Headquarters in Kabul, Italy has assumed the vice-command of the Resolute Support Mission. The "Sassari" Brigade is instead responsible for the western sector of the UNIFIL mission, in the south of Lebanon and in the capital Beirut, last August, the "CEDRI" Operation was conducted, with which they intervened with a field hospital of the Army and various specialized assets to help the Lebanese population following the explosion of 2.700 tons of ammonium nitrate, which devastated the city. In Iraq, the Army soldiers, together with components of other Armed Forces, train the Kurdish (Peshmerga) and Iraqi security forces in the "Prima Parthica" operation, while similar activities are carried out in Somalia, Niger and Mali (with the European Union Training Missions). In Libya, the personnel working at the Misrata military field hospital, as part of the MIASIT mission, continue to provide health care to the population. In Kosovo, where Italy has held the leadership of the NATO mission since 2013, the KFOR contingent is currently based on the 5th “Superga” Terrestrial Artillery Regiment. 200 soldiers are employed in the NATO Enhanced Forward Presence mission in Latvia and additional contingents are deployed in other countries and areas of the world.
To ensure a rotation between the departments and a constant presence abroad, throughout 2020 the Army has trained and prepared its units, providing specialized personnel for numerous other international commitments and maintaining an operational share of forces belonging to the Forces NATO Rapid Reaction.
At the same time, the Army soldiers, together with the Police Forces, are engaged in 53 cities as part of the “Safe Roads” operation, for the surveillance of sensitive installations and the garrison of the main metropolitan areas of the country. The operation includes the activities carried out in Campania in response to the “Terra dei Fuochi” emergency, for the prevention and contrast of environmental crimes. More than 16.500 people have been arrested since the start of the operation; over 14.000 individuals were arrested and more than 26.000 were reported on the loose. In addition, checks were carried out on approximately 5 million and 300 thousand people and more than 1 million and 800 thousand vehicles, seized over 14.000 vehicles, 1352 weapons and nearly 2 and a half tons of drugs.
Furthermore, the Army, in close coordination with the other Armed Forces, has intervened since March, at the outbreak of the epidemiological emergency from Covid-19, providing all the capabilities and means necessary for the management and containment of the virus: from the sanitization of public and religious places to the control of areas and cities, up to the setting up of field hospitals. Currently there are about 1.400 soldiers employed in the IGEA Operation, launched in October on the initiative of the Minister of Defense Lorenzo Guerini, aimed at increasing the national capacity to carry out swabs. Drive-Through-Defense (DtD) were set up throughout the territory and military field hospitals were set up in Aosta, Perugia and Cosenza, while Army doctors and nurses were set up at the military hospitals in Milan or at the "Celio" Polyclinic in Rome. , assisted and treated citizens affected by the virus on a daily basis. These days, the Army's commitment, with the other Armed Forces, continues with the EOS operation in support of the anti-Covid-19 vaccination campaign. "You, friends of the Italian Army, have given us the lesson of a testimony of courage that did not flee from dangers but often went to seek the most complex and risky situations, regardless of fatigue and danger", with these words Monsignor Santo Marcianò, Military Ordinary for Italy, wanted to summarize the Army's commitment in this 2020 of the fight against Coronavirus.
In addition, there have been numerous interventions by the Army following calamitous events, conducted in synergy with the Civil Protection for the rescue of the population and the restoration of road conditions: from the flood that hit the town of Bitti last month, in Nuorese, when the Panaro river flooded, in Nonantola (MO), after which departments of the Engineers intervened from the early hours of the event to provide assistance and evacuate the people who remained isolated. Last summer, the Army Aviation was employed in the Forest Fire Campaign and in the protection of the natural heritage, conducting missions for 90 hours of flight and over 300 water drops on fires that affected Sicily, Lazio and Piedmont and others regions, for a total of 300 liters spilled.
Army on the front line also at Mo.SE. of Venice: the soldiers of the 7th Transmission Regiment, permanently present in the control room of the Lido 3 harbor entrance, provide constant support in the operation and maintenance checks of the data transport network, allowing the simultaneous lifting of the 4 mobile protective barriers of the important engineering work of the lagoon.
In line with the missions assigned to the Armed Force, in 2020 the bomb squads of the Army in force in the departments of the Engineers carried out more than 2.700 remediation of explosive devices and remnants of war (most of which dating back to the Second World War), some considerable complexity and weighing hundreds of pounds, such as the bombs found in Mestre, Fiumalbo (MO), Palermo, Bolzano. Over the past 10 years, over 34.000 defusing and blasting interventions have been completed.
The last intervention, in chronological order, is the contribution to the Civil Protection provided by the “Pozzuolo del Friuli” Cavalry Brigade to help the population hit by the earthquake in Croatia.
A dynamic and multifaceted commitment that of the Army, capable of responding to events and emergency situations with a reactivity of intervention typical of a cohesive and disciplined Armed Force, which in 2020 confirmed itself as a "beacon of technology and innovation", both for the '' introduction into service of new systems, as well as for the many experimentation campaigns aimed at the capacitive development of platforms and equipment (among these the campaign in the field of Robotics and Autonomous Systems, launched last October).
The men and women of the Army will continue to work, as they have always done, for the defense and security of the country and its citizens, aware of the principles and peculiar values of those who have chosen to wear uniforms and serve the country in arms. In recalling his mottos, “We are always there” and “More together”, the Army wishes Italy and the Italians a 2021 relaunch for all.