Yesterday morning, the tank crews of the 4th Regiment celebrated the eighty-fourth anniversary of the Battle of Tobruk. During the ceremony, the heroic deeds accomplished by Italian soldiers in seven months of operational employment in North Africa were recalled, for which the 4th Regiment was awarded a Gold Medal and two Bronze Medals for Military Valor.
The ceremony took place inside the “Capone” barracks in Persano, in the presence of the Combat Standard of the 4th Tank Regiment, the regiment commander and a lineup of armed personnel and historic and modern tanks. Numerous civil and military authorities were present, the mayors of the neighboring municipalities, the granddaughter of the Gold Medal Second Lieutenant Livio Pentimalli and the retired division general, Attilio Claudio Borreca, representing theNational Association of Carristi d'Italia.
The regiment commander, Colonel Antonio Merenda, retraced the regiment's historical events, recalling some moments of the fighting in Tobruk and, in celebrating the commitment of the many tank crew members who sacrificed their lives for the Fatherland, he also remembered those who are currently employed in Italy and abroad to ensure the country's security.
Furthermore, during the day, special Infoteams conducted demonstration activities for the students of the “A. Sacco” Comprehensive Institute of S. Arsenio and the “SPES Unica” cooperative of Eboli, aimed at presenting the various training activities of the Army and sharing information on recruitment possibilities and methods.
The ceremony concluded with the parade of the Combat Standard aboard the historic L3/33 tank, used by tank crews in Africa and still in operation today, thanks to the passion and expertise of the regiment's mechanics.