On April 3, the siege of the cave began. The Arbegnoch put up stiff resistance, which was initially successful. The [Fascist] troops were in a difficult position, as the steep rock walls on either side of the cave left them exposed to enemy fire.

The Ascari used machine guns, artillery, grenades and tear gas bullets, but failed to flush out the partisans. The situation had reached a stalemate, even though they even tried to use flamethrowers.

After seven days of siege, the [Fascist] command decided to call up the chemical warfare platoon from the port of Massawa in Eritrea, which arrived with hundreds of artillery shells loaded with arsine and an airplane bomb containing about 212 kg of mustard gas.

On April 9, the chemical platoon, after funneling the mustard gas into 12 containers connected to electric detonators, dropped them in front of the cave entrance and blew them up. Thus began the inferno of Amazegna Washa.

The initial contact with mustard gas is painless, but it penetrates the skin deeply, passing through waterproof clothing, and it causes the progressive inflammation of skin tissues. After a few hours, the skin swells in huge blisters, which later turn into sores that expose the raw flesh to the air. The gas causes severe internal bleeding, attacks the respiratory system and causes blindness.

Many Arbegnoch that found themselves near the entrance of the cave quickly succumbed to the gas, and those hiding inside would suffer the effects of exposure. The refugees and partisans hiding in the cave were at the end of their strength. The gas polluted the internal lake. Thus, on April 11, the procession of partisans, women and children began to leave the cave.

The men, about 800, were immediately shot in groups of 50 on the edge of the ravine, according to Mussolini’s supreme decree, while the women and children were held for a short time near the [Regio Esercito] encampment and then released, dying of gas poisoning.

This is the most plausible reconstruction of the massacre carried out by the Fascist units, which violated the Geneva Convention in every way. Almost 80 years later, the size of this massacre is still shrouded in a cloud of mystery.

Unlike the high-ranking Fascist officers, it is difficult to say whether the [Regio Esercito] knew that inside the cave there were also women, children and the elderly. However, it is plausible to estimate that the dead, inside and outside the cave, numbered between 800 and 1,500.