Italy: Far-Right Activists Convicted for Attempting to Recreate Fascist Party

On 12 February 2026, an Italian court convicted a group of far-right activists for attempting to recreate a political party inspired by the country’s historical fascist regime, according to French media outlet Brut.

The defendants were found guilty of violating Italian laws that prohibit the re-establishment of the Fascist Party, which ruled the country under dictator Benito Mussolini from 1922 to 1943. Following the collapse of fascism at the end of World War II, Italy adopted a republican constitution that explicitly bans any attempt to reorganize the fascist party. This constitutional prohibition is reinforced by criminal legislation, notably the so-called Scelba Law, which outlaws the promotion or reconstruction of fascist organizations.

Prosecutors argued that the activists sought to create a political movement that directly referenced the ideology, symbols and rhetoric of historical fascism. According to the court, their actions went beyond provocative political expression or historical nostalgia and amounted to a concrete effort to revive a banned political formation.

Italy today is a democratic republic with a pluralistic party system that includes nationalist and right-wing parties operating within constitutional boundaries. However, explicit efforts to glorify, reorganize or institutionalize fascism remain illegal.

The ruling underscores that Italy’s constitutional safeguards against the return of fascism are not merely symbolic, but remain legally enforceable more than eight decades after the fall of the regime.

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Italie: des militants d'extrême droite condamnés pour avoir tenté de recréer le Parti fasciste.