Italy mourns military men killed in Afghanistan

The bodies of the six Italian soldiers killed in a car bomb attack in Afghanistan on Thursday have returned home.

Their deaths are biggest loss the country has suffered since it deployed its troops in Afghanistan People from all over Italy came to the capital to pay their respects: “ I am from Sardinia and one of the dead is from the island but I came for all the victims. I am a mother and I think of the pain all mothers feel. An aircraft carrying the coffins of the six soldiers landed at Rome’s Ciampino airport where they were met by the country’s President Giorgio Napolitano and family members. Italy will mark their passing with a national day of mourning on Monday with a minutes silence to be held in schools and public offices across the country. The casualties have intensified the debate to withdraw the troops. The country has 3,100 troops stationed in Afghanistan and Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi would like to bring the mission home but says a unilateral withdrawal is unlikely.

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