by InTrieste
Italy will commemorate the Giorno del Ricordo (Day of Remembrance) on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, with a solemn national ceremony at the Foiba of Basovizza, a memorial site on the Karst plateau near Trieste that has become the symbolic center of remembrance for the victims of postwar violence along the country’s eastern border.
The ceremony, scheduled for 10:30 a.m., will be attended by Infrastructure and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini, according to organizers. The possible presence of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has not yet been confirmed.
The Day of Remembrance, established by law in 2004, honors the victims of the foibe—natural sinkholes used as mass graves during and after World War II—as well as the forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of Italians from Istria, Fiume and Dalmatia following the 1947 Paris Peace Treaty, which reassigned those territories to Yugoslavia.
Official Ceremonies
The commemorations will begin earlier on February 10, at 9:30 a.m., with a wreath-laying ceremony at the Foiba of Monrupino, also a national monument. Representatives of the Friuli Venezia Giulia regional government, the Prefecture of Trieste, the Municipality of Trieste, and organizations representing Istrian, Fiuman and Dalmatian exiles are expected to attend.
Details of the official program are published by the Municipality of Trieste:
🔗 https://www.comune.trieste.it
A Month of Public Events
The February 10 ceremonies are part of a broader calendar of cultural and educational initiatives taking place throughout the region during the month.
Among the key events:
- February 9 – March 29
Exhibition: The Forgotten Massacre: Vergarolla and Its Hero, Geppino Micheletti
Civic Museum of Istrian, Fiuman and Dalmatian Civilization, Trieste
🔗 https://www.irci.it - February 10, 5:30 p.m.
Conference: The Meaning of the Day of Remembrance
Sala Bazlen, Palazzo Gopcevich, Trieste - February 11, 3:30 p.m.
Commemoration: Wreath-laying for clergy who died in exile
Sant’Anna Monumental Cemetery, Trieste - February 25, 6:30 p.m.
Film screening: Vedo Rosso, a documentary on Italian life in Istria during the 1970s
Cinema Ariston, Trieste - February 26, 6:00 p.m.
Presentation: Digital atlas of postwar refugee camps
Circolo della Stampa, Trieste
A full schedule of events is available through the regional tourism portal:
🔗 https://www.turismofvg.it
A National Commemoration
Promoted by the Municipality of Trieste and the Committee for the Martyrs of the Foibe, in collaboration with historical institutes and cultural associations, the program combines official remembrance with public discussion, historical research and artistic expression.
