Italian Army Guastatori Destruction Group

At the beginning of World War II, the Italian Army lacked any specialist assault engineering units capable of tackling enemy fortifications. Observing the success of German pioneers during the blitzkrieg, Italian military leaders saw the need for similar capabilities. This led to the formation of the Guastatori del Genio, elite combat engineers trained from late 1940 to perform demolition, sabotage, and close-quarters assault operations.