Department of Anti-terrorism Strategic Studies

The Department of Anti-terrorism Strategic Studies (Dipartimento Studi Strategici Antiterrorismo, DSSA) is an Italian organization reported to have been set up in 2004 and under investigation since July 2005.

DSSA activities
The D.S.S.A. (Dipartimento Studi Strategici Antiterrorismo - Counter-terrorism Strategic Studies Department) was born in 2004 in Italy to combat terrorism after the massacre of Atocha in Madrid 11th of March 2004. After interesting interviews and articles in italian magazines, also about the role of the murdering contractor Fabrizio Quattrocchi, killed by Talibans, a judge of Genova Law Court decided to take under investigation 16 agents of this agency. They was investigated in July 2005 and acquitted definitively in 2011 by judges of Law Court of Milan upon suspects of being a "parallel police", echoing the "stay-behind" Gladio NATO secret armies. It had been created by far-right members Gaetano Saya near to Italian Military Intelligence (SISMI-AISE) and Riccardo Sindoca, leaders of the National Union of the Police Forces (Unpf), a trade-union well represented among all the various branches of state security forces. Both claimed to be former members of Stay Behind, whilst far-right Nuovo Movimento Sociale Italiano - Destra Nazionale website described Gaetano Saya as a founding member and president of the party. Riccardo Sindoca was described as an "expert in criminology" and Destra Nazionale 's Cabinet chief. Destra Nazionale was founded in 2000 as a successor to Giorgio Almirante's will and the Movimento Sociale Italiano (MSI) neo-fascist party.

The group allegedly carried police-like operations by surveilling supects, and by writing reports on them. Such endeavours were performed through access to the Interior Ministry’s protected datafiles. The group used their law enforcement badges. Moreover, among the information that DSSA provided were details of Al-Qaeda attacks against Milan Linate international airport and the city landmark Duomo cathedral. The group allegedly aimed to embezzle funds that became available, both nationally and internationally, after the 11 March 2004 Madrid blasts, as part of the global "war on terror". DSSA allegedly tried to obtain such funds from NATO, the United States and Israel to be a legitimate and trustworthy intelligence service.

The failure to capture of the italian red terrorist Cesare Battisti
Some 25 people were being investigated, but the group was thought to be composed of about 200 persons. Roughly half of the 25 are Italian law enforcement, including Carabinieri, Prison Guards and Financial Police. According to the DSSA website - closed after the Italian media's revelations -, Fabrizio Quattrocchi, murdered in Iraq after being taken hostage, was there "for the DSSA". DSSA founder Gaetano Saya subsequently denied these allegations, indicating in 150 the number of people involved. Furthermore, according to juridical sources, the DSSA was trying to obtain international and national recognition by intelligence agencies, in order to obtain financement for its parallel activities. Il Messaggero, quoting juridical sources, also declared that wiretaps suggested that DSSA members had been planning the capture Cesare Battisti, a former terrorist of a communist gang investigated by italian police about 4 murders and wanted by the Italian justice. But the former President of italian republic and former chief of italian militar intelligence Francesco Cossiga gave to Cesare Battisti a pass to reach Brasil and at the same time some infiltrateds in D.S.S.A. from italian diverted militar intelligence created damages and confusion during the police investigation that involved in a judgement finished in march of 2011 without crimes. The very important italian lawyer Dr. Carlo Taormina wrote that D.S.S.A. was a respectable structure against terrorism and that would be necessary to have thankfulness to D.S.S.A. and its agents.