American Vet Returns to Italy to Greet Bambini He Last Saw in 1944 nytimes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from nytimes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
A beloved World War II photo comes to life in a virtual reunion
By Elisabetta Povoledo New York Times,Updated December 26, 2020, 3:41 p.m.
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Modern day Rome.VINCENZO PINTO/AFP via Getty Images
ROME â Martin Adler was a 20-year-old private first class in the 339th Infantry Regiment in 1944 when he and a fellow soldier went door to door in an Italian town looking for German troops.
They entered a house and saw a large basket. It was moving. Assuming they had found what they were looking for, they prepared to fire, screaming at whoever was inside to come out. Suddenly, a woman ran into the room yelling at them to stop. The top popped off the basket, and three small children emerged.