Italians have called for a political truce for a few days. Then watch out

Italians mourn, ask why, as dead return from Iraq

<snip>"The illusion of a moderate, humanitarian presence aimed at solidarity (with Iraqi people) was ended by the mangled bodies...of poor soldiers who died just a few day before they were due to come home," the Corriere della Sera of Milan said.

No one expected the political truce to last long.

"Today is not a day for polemics, but for national unity in mourning," said centre-left opposition politician Franco Monaco. "In coming days we can and should make a critical reflection on the war, on the management of the post-war and the nature and scope of the Italian mission."

The headline in the newspaper of the largest opposition, the Democrats of the Left, was a foretaste of fireworks to come.

"The dead of Nassiriya are asking why," ran the headline in L'Unita, which, like all Italian papers, ran more than 10 pages on the story.

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