The South Tyrolean Liberation Committee (, abbreviated ''BAS'') was an underground secessionist and terrorist organisation founded by Sepp Kerschbaumer and several combatants including

Georg Klotz Georg may refer to: * Georg (film), ''Georg'' (film), 1997 *Georg (musical), Estonian musical * Georg (given name) * Georg (surname) * , a Kriegsmarine coastal tanker * Spiders Georg, an Internet meme See also

* George (disambiguation) {{di ...

in the mid-1950s which aimed to achieve the right for

self-determination Self-determination refers to a people's right to form its own political entity, and internal self-determination is the right to representative government with full suffrage. Self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international la ...

for

South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...

and the related

secession Secession is the formal withdrawal of a group from a Polity, political entity. The process begins once a group proclaims an act of secession (such as a declaration of independence). A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal i ...

from

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

via bomb attacks.

History

The organisation's history can be divided into two stages.Rolf Steininger (2003). ''South Tyrol: A Minority Conflict of the Twentieth Century.'' New Brunswick, New Jersey: Transaction Publishers. In the first phase, from 1956 until 1961, the activists focussed on symbolic targets such as relics of the

fascist regime Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hie ...

, trying to avoid physical injuries of human beings. On 12 June 1961, the BAS organized the bombing of 37 electricity pylons supplying power to the industrial zone of

Bolzano Bolzano ( ; ; or ) is the capital city of South Tyrol (officially the province of Bolzano), Northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third largest in historical Tyrol. The ...

, later known as the

Night of Fire The German Night Gate Fire (; ) happened on the night of 12 June 1961 when 37 electricity pylons were blown up in South Tyrol by the South Tyrolean Liberation Committee. It formed a turning point in the history of the province. Background Afte ...

(''Feuernacht''). After the subsequent imprisonment of almost all leading members, a second, more violent phase began. This second phase was characterised by an increasing infiltration of Austrian and German

neo-Nazis Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and racial supremacy (often white supremacy), to att ...

and intensified

secret service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. For i ...

activities which culminated in several assassinations and ambushes on Italian security forces, with the 1967 attack on a security patrol at Cima Vallona being the most notorious. With the progression of negotiations concerning South Tyrolean autonomy in the late 1960s, the BAS became less active.

References

External links

The exhibition of the “South Tyrolean Liberation Committee”
in

Bozen Bolzano ( ; ; or ) is the capital city of South Tyrol (officially the province of Bolzano), Northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third largest in historical Tyrol. The g ...

{{Authority control Terrorism in Italy South Tyrolean nationalism Independence movements Secessionist organizations in Europe Paramilitary organisations based in Italy