In Rome on 23 March 1944 , 33 policemen of the Police Regiment Bozen from the German-speaking population of the Italian province of South Tyrol and three Italian civilians were killed by a bomb blast and the subsequent shooting . In response , Hitler approved the recommendation of von Mackensen , who was responsible for the sector including Rome , that ten Italians should be shot for each policeman killed . The task fell to SS '' Obersturmbannführer '' Herbert Kappler who , finding there were not enough condemned prisoners available , made up the numbers using Jewish prisoners and civilians taken from the streets . The result was the Ardeatine massacre
Ardeatine massacre
Ardeatine massacre
Albert Kesselring