The Gonars concentration camp was one of the several Italian concentration camps and it was established on February 23, 1942, near Gonars, Italy. Many internees were transferred to this camp from the other Italian concentration camp, Rab concentration camp, which served as equivalent of final solution in Mario Roatta's ethnic cleansing policy against ethnic Slovenes from the Italian-occupied Province of Ljubljana and Croats from Gorski Kotar, in accord with the racist 1920s speech by Benito Mussolini, along with other Italian war crimes committed on the Italian-occupied territories of Yugoslavia: The first transport of 5,343 internees (1,643 of whom were children) arrived two days after its establishment, on February 23, 1942, from the Province of Ljubljana and from the other two Italian concentration camps, the Rab camp and the camp in Monigo (near Treviso). The camp was disbanded on September 8, 1943, immediately after the Italian armistice. Only in 1973 a sacrarium was created by sculptor Miodrag Živković at the town's cemetery. Remains of 453 Slovenian and Croatian victims were transferred into its two underground crypts. It is believed that at least 50 additional persons died in the camp due to starvation and torture. Notable inmates Slovenes Viktor Antolin, professor of philosophy (student/journalist at the time) France Balantič, poet France Bučar, lawyer, writer, and statesman in post-1991 Slovenia Lojze Bukovac, bearer of Commemorative Medal of the Partisans of 1941, a writer Alojz Gradnik, poet Bogo Grafenauer, historian Zora Konjajev, pediatrician Boris Kraigher, politician Vasilij Melik, historian Frane Milčinski (pen name Ježek), a poet, actor, children's writer, and director Odon Peterka, poet Jakob Savinšek, sculptor and poet Bojan Štih, literary critic, essayist, and stage director Bogdana Stritar, opera singer Nada Vidmar, opera singer Nande Vidmar, painter Anton Vratuša, politician Aleš Strojnik, scientist and educator Vitomil Zupan, writer Sources Alessandra Kersevan (2008): Lager italiani. Pulizia etnica e campi di concentramento fascisti per civili jugoslavi 1941–1943. Editore Nutrimenti, Alessandra Kersevan (2003): Un campo di concentramento fascista. Gonars 1942–1943., Kappa Vu Edizioni, Udine. Nadja Pahor Verri (1996): Oltre il filo : storia del campo di internamento di Gonars, 1941–1943, Arti Grafiche Friulane, Udine. Luca Baldissara, Paolo Pezzino (2004): Crimini e memorie di guerra: violenze contro le popolazioni e politiche del ricordo, L'Ancora del Mediterraneo. Further reading Bregar, Ana (2013): Comparing situation at the Gonars Concentration Camp and the Rab Concentration Camp (In Slovene: "Primerjava taboriščnih razmer na Rabu in v Gonarsu"), Diploma thesis, Faculty of