Families ask the court to keep the case open
Daria Bonfietti and the families of the 81 people who died when the DC9 crashed on the night of 27 June 1980 are in Rome today. They and their lawyers will be at the hearing where Judge Giulia Arcieri must decide whether to accept the Prosecutor of Rome's request to archive the investigation.
Why the prosecutor wants to close the file
The prosecutor has asked the judge to archive the inquiry, saying there are not enough elements to bring a trial. That request runs to about 450 pages.
Why the families disagree
Bonfietti says those 450 pages actually repeat an important conclusion already reached years ago by Judge Rosario Priore: the DC9 was likely shot down during an episode of aerial warfare. She says the document adds new information that deserves investigation.
- Italian investigators were informed that a NATO military attaché in Brussels tracked military activity that night involving French and US aircraft that took off from the Grazzanise base and headed toward Corsica.
- There are indications of the presence in the Gulf of Naples of the French aircraft carrier Foch. French authorities have officially denied this presence.
Bonfietti says these points need further probing. Her lawyers will ask the judge not to archive the case but to allow more investigation.
Political pressure and a presidential remark
Bonfietti recalled words spoken by President Sergio Mattarella on the 45th anniversary of the tragedy. He said the Republic will not stop seeking cooperation from other countries to fully reconstruct what happened on 27 June 1980.
She added that the Italian government should press harder for full cooperation from allied countries in the name of national dignity. The families want the probe to continue until all relevant facts are clarified.
Today’s hearing will decide whether those demands get another chance in court or whether the file is closed.
