Terror in Italy

[Kingdom of Sweden]

Terrorist Attack Targets Government Buildings in Rome

At 11:53am local time, 2 men wearing explosive vests set off their bombs outside the Palazzo Chigi and Palazzo del Quirinale almost simultaneously. The militant group Ansar Bait al-Maqdis has taken responsibility for the attack that so far has killed 35. President Mattarella was not present during the attack. Fires continue to burn at the Palace, which was reportedly significantly damaged in the blast. The Italian military has been mobilized in the city to help with ongoing rescue efforts, and secure the city against possible future attacks. The military remains at a heightened state of readiness.

[Kingdom of Sweden]

President Sergio Mattarella has called for an emergency meeting of Parliament to discuss a possible response to the attacks. In a statement to the press, he said;
"Acts of barbarism like this cannot, and will not go unpunished."

[Kingdom of Sweden]

Prime Minister Draghi, currently indisposed in Japan, has stated that any decision the Parliament and President come to as a response to this attack will have his blessing.
And with that, the debate in the senate began.

Several proposals were heard, ranging from simply increasing local security to prevent future attacks, to a saturation bombing campaign of the Sinai peninsula. This radical solution was not taken seriously however. In a rare show of solidarity in the Senate, the majority government and opposition parties were largely in agreement, simply squabbling over the details, which dragged the debate on through 2 days. The agreed upon proposal will now be sent to the Chamber of Deputies for further discussion.

[The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth]

The Sabmadi Federation offers its most sincere condolences to the Republic of Italy and offers to serve as a stabilizing force in the Sinai peninsula, stating that it can have security forces in the Sinai within 48 hours to begin working to bring these terrorists to justice.

[Kingdom of Sweden]

The debate in the Chamber of Deputies would be just as heated as the Senate, but for different reasons. The Sinai Peninsula has been an autonomous buffer zone between the Italian Canal zone, and the Sabmadi Federation for several decades. Either nation putting boots on the ground in the region would be violating the treaty that created the zone in the first place, potentially causing an international incident. However, the Italian Senate, having just passed down a resolution to do exactly that, has put the government as a whole in a predicament. An air campaign, followed by a small scale ground incursion in order to route out remaining insurgents. Thats the proposal set down by the senate. As a result, the Italian government cant officially reject the Federations proposal without appearing to be hypocrites, but at the same time, agreeing to the proposal could cause the tension sure to come even worse. As a result, Italy has elected to say nothing.

[The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth]

The Sabmadi Parliament, already mid-session, hears the news of the passage of the Italian resolution that would permit them to land military forces in the buffer territory of Sinai. In a rare near-unanimous decision, the Sabmadi Parliament clears the mobilization of garrison units in Israel and Jordan and orders their deployment to the border with Sinai.

The Italian ambassador in Damascus is informed that the deployment of Italian military forces in the Sinai Peninsula would be in violation of the treaty between our respective states, and would be met with the deployment of Federation forces to the region.

[Kingdom of Sweden]

The Italian ambassador would invite representatives of the Federation to the embassy in Damascus to discuss the current situation as it stands.

Meanwhile, the Mechanized Brigades "Aosta" and " Sassari", the 5th Infantrry Regiment, Airmobile Brigade "Friuli", the Cavalry Brigade "Pozzuolo del Friuli", and the 5th Field Artillery Regiment "Superga" are all readied to deploy to the Suez Canal Zone, and the Light Aircraft Carrier Giuseppe Garibaldi + escorts are redeployed to the Port of Suez on the Red Sea. The 32nd air wing (13th Fighter bomber squadron (Ariete I2-31) + support) and the 36th air wing (10th and 12th Fighter Squadron (Dardo B/C F3-R) + support) are readied for combat on the Island of Cyprus. And the 103rd Ground Attack Squadron +support is detached from the 51st Air Training Wing and deployed to the Port Said Int. Airport.

[^ That info is for OOC reference ight, you want IC details you gotta go find em <3]

[The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth]

The Federation issues a formal diplomatic protest to the Italian Embassy in Damascus regarding the mass deployment of forces, easily putting two and two together after Federation patrol craft off the coast of Syria note the moving Italian naval assets.

The Federation's Foreign Minister arrives to the Italian Embassy in Damascus. "Ambassador, I wish we were meeting under better circumstances. I'm sure I don't have to tell you that any deployment of Italian military forces to the Sinai peninsula would be in violation of the Treaty of Cairo, no?"

[Kingdom of Sweden]

"I understand your concern Minister, but you must see this from both sides. My country was attacked, those responsible gambled on our inaction, believing they could avoid retaliation within the demilitarized zone. Italy must show them that theyre not safe anywhere they hide. Inaction now would only encourage them. I have been givin assurances from my government to yours that this will not impact the status quo in the region, this would be purely a punitive expedition."

[Alanston]

Noting the buildup of forces in the Suez regon, Governor Mohamed Abdel-Fadil Shousha of the Sinai Autonomous Republic would contact both the Italians and the Sabmadi to remind them that they are legally obliged by the Treaty of Cairo to keep their respective militaries out of the Sinai Peninsula, and that both are pledged to recognizing the autonomy and independence of the region. He would then call upon the international community for support should either power decide to actually violate the Treaty of Cairo and send troops into Sinai.

---

In response to Governor Abdel-Fadil Sousha's plea, the Forum of Nations sends a strongly worded email to both Italy and Sabmadi (both nations would be recipients on a single email), reminding them that they agreed to respect the Treaty of Cairo, and threatening very bad consequences if they violated the treaty. If they traced the IP address for the email, they would find that it came from the nation of Tokelau.

► Show Spoiler

The Sinai Autonomous Republic is north and south Sinai. The various nations in the Forum of Nations can be found in their respective forum.

[The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth]

"A punitive strike it may be, but it would still be in violation of the treaty. The exact clause of the treaty expressly prohibits either of our nations from crossing military assets into Sinai. The only way I can see this taking place without an unnecessary spike in tensions in the Mediterranean would be if this were a joint operation between both of our states to remove terroristic elements from the Sinai."

[Kingdom of Sweden]

"And potentially start a much more destructive and destabilizing conflict in the process? Thats a risk my government isn't willing to take, and id recommend the same for you. Ill remind you why this treaty was necessary in the first place. Our nations have done good work in repairing relations since then, and Id ask your government not to undue all of that work by blowing this out of proportion. You have my word, and a to-be-drafted written agreement from the Republic, that once militants in the region have been sufficiently pacified, Italian troops will leave the demilitarized zone, and the status quo will continue. That said, this operation is going to take place, and it is out of my hands to stop it, even if I wanted to. How the Federation handles the situation, and the potential blood that could be spilled here, will be on your governments hands alone."

[The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth]

"Ambassador, relations between the Federation and Italy have been slowly improving... so I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt. If you can have that agreement on my desk before your troops land in Sinai, I'll pull whatever strings I have to in order to get our forces along the border back to their normal stations."

[Kingdom of Sweden]

"Wonderful! I knew we could come to a compromise. I will have that for your government by the end of the day. I appreciate your understanding."

With that, a written statement signed by the Prime Minister and President of Italy is sent to the federation government clearly laying out the goal of the operation in the Sinai, and insuring them that the intentions of the operation are purely defensive. It also states that Italian troops will not remain in the DMZ for longer than deemed necessary for the success of the operation, and that no annexations of land will be made in the area by Italy.

[The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth]

The Federation acknowledges the receipt of the document, and the signed original is returned to the Italian Embassy in Damascus. The Federation's partial mobilization order is rescinded, with a small AWACS presence and escort for said AWACS maintained over Federation airspace in Israel, Jordan, and the Mediterranean.