An Italian general whose book containing homophobic and racist passages sparked an uproar on the peninsula was sacked Friday from his post as commander of the Military Geographical Institute, Italian media, including Corriere della Sera, reported. Questioned by AFP, the Ministry of Defense did not deny this information.
In his self-published book entitled "The World Upside Down", released on August 10, General Roberto Vannacci, 54, former head of an elite paratrooper corps, presents himself as "an heir to Julius Caesar".
"Dear homosexuals, you are not normal, make a reason," he writes in this book, in which he denounces "questionable rules of inclusion and tolerance imposed by minorities." He violently attacked the black volleyball player Paola Egonu, who plays for the Italian team: "Paola Egonu is of Italian nationality, but it is obvious that her features do not represent Italianness".
'Opinions that discredit the army'
On Thursday, Defense Minister Guido Crosetto condemned the "delusions" of the general who has spent most of his career in the field, in Somalia, Rwanda, Afghanistan and Libya.
"General (Roberto) Vannacci has expressed opinions that discredit the army (...) and the Constitution," Guido Crosetto, a close associate of the far-right head of government, Giorgia Meloni, said in a statement. Guido Croestto and Giorgia Meloni had founded their Fratelli d'Italia party together.
The Ministry of Defense will launch the disciplinary procedure planned," said Guido Crosetto. The General Staff also indicated that it had not been "informed of the contents of the book, which had never been subject to authorization from the military hierarchy".
According to the AGI agency, General Vannacci was made available to the army forces. "I don't see why I should take a step back for a book in which I express my thoughts, without offending anyone," he defended Friday on a television channel, Rette 4.