The May 1973 Terrorist Attack at Milan Police HQ: Anarchist 'Propaganda of the Deed' or 'False-Flag' Provocation?

Between 1968 and 1974 Italy was subjected to an unusually virulent campaign of right-wing terrorism and subversion. An illustrative episode associated with this so-called 'strategy of tension', which was characterized by the systematic use of covert 'false flag' operations, was the 17 May 1973 grenade attack outside Milan police headquarters that resulted in four dead and over 40 injured. Although the perpetrator, Gianfranco Bertoli, claimed to be an 'individualist anarchist' and had in fact established contacts with certain anarchist and leftist groups, subsequent judicial investigations revealed that he had been an informant and infiltrator for the Italian military intelligence service, that he had long maintained links with various anti-communist and neo-fascist organizations, and that he apparently received 'cover' and some type of logistical support prior to the attack from one or more 'international secret services'. Although many aspects of the crime still remain murky, in all probability Bertoli was an agent provocateur acting on behalf of clandestine, quasi-official intelligence apparatuses rather than a solitary anarchist engaging in violent 'propaganda of the deed'.