ITALY WADES i BLOOD.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1279, 7 November 1911, Page 5

ITALY WADES i BLOOD.

MERCILESS BUTCHERY. PRESS CORRESPONDENTS' PROTEST. A JOINT STATEMENT.

By Teleeranh-Press Association— Copyright (Rec. November 6, 11 p.m.) Malta, November 0. Reuter's Tripoli correspondent has made a sworn statement regarding tho massacres, which has been countersigned by the correspondents of tho "Morning Post" and tho "Daily Mirror." Ho declares, at tho request of the British Consul at Tripoli, that the correspondents of the "Now York World" and the Berlin "Lokal-Anzeiger" were so disgusted with tho conduct of tho Italian army iu Tripoli that they handed their passes back to General Caneva, tho Italian Commander-in-Chief in Tripoli, and refused to havo further dealings with the army. Tho statement affirms that until October 23 the Italians treated the Arabs kindly, and tho Bersaglieri (riflemen) rightly shot tho Arabs in the southeastern portion of the oasis. Afterwards. General Caneva ordered all Arabs found with arms in the oasis to be shot. Finding that tho Arabs were hiding their arms, tho order was changed, and tho command was given to shoot all who were reasonably suspected of bearing arms. Indiscriminate Slaughter. Bodies of excited soldiery, often without officers, scoured the oasis for four days, indiscriminately shooting down Arabs, regardless of whether they took part in tho attack or not. The Bersaglieri collected several parties of fifty and sixty Arabs, men and boys, tied their hands, and marchod them to vacant places, where they were shot Without trial. Other Arabs were shot while working in their gardens. Some wero bayonet led and clubbed to death with the butt-ends of the rifles. On tho fourth day after the so-called insurrection, tho correspondent saw a detachment of Italian troops meet threo weaponless Arabs, obviously men of property, and shoot them without a word of explanation. Shot Down in Batches. Other reports from Tripoli state that a reign of terror exists. Tho house-to-house searches continue, and summary punishment is meted out on tho least pretence, batches of fifty prisoners being executed after a minute's trial beforo a tribunal of officers. Tho "New York World" correspondent violently attacks General Caneva, who, ho alleges, is never ontsido his bombproof shelter. Ho adds that the Arabs only mutilated the Italian corpses after tho Italian massacres.