A rabbi was joined by ardent protesters in Italy to block the funeral procession for Nazi war criminal Erich Priebke who died while serving his life sentence at his lawyer's home, Reuters reported.
The final location of Priebke's service, which was set for Tuesday, is now unknown as Wednesday marks the 70th anniversary of the deportation of Jews from the Rome ghetto. His casket remains at a military airport in Rome as authorities make a decision.
The former Nazi officer died last week at the age of 100. He was serving time for his role in the 1944 killing of 335 civilians at the Ardeatine Caves outside of Rome. The brutal massacre was carried out in response to an assault by resistance fighters that killed 33 Nazi police officers a day before.
During a ceremony at Rome's main synagogue, Rabbi Riccardo Pacifici received loud applause as he supported the protesters and mayor of Albano Laziale for halting Priebke's funeral.
"For this we feel proud to be Romans," Pacifici said at the event.
"I do not even want to say his (Priebke's) name, not to profane this sacred place," added Renzo Gattegna, head of Union of Italian Jewish Communities.
"He never repented of his crimes and repeated the most incredible arguments denying the Holocaust."
Italian President Giorgio Napolitano was also in attendance at the ceremony, wearing a kippah, and said the gathering "great solidarity... between Catholics, Muslims, Jews, believers and non-believers."
Anti-fascist protesters clashed with neo-Nazis in Albano Laziale on Tuesday outside the Catholic Society of St. Pius (SSPX) -- a right-wing group that has damaged ties with the Vatican -- which organized the funeral arrangements.
In the face of criticism for planning to bury Priebke, SSPX said in a statement that any baptized Christian has the right to a proper service "no matter what his sins" and said they "reiterate our rejection of all forms of anti-Semitism and racial hatred."
