War of Tripoli

 With a decree of 5 November 1911, Italy declared its sovereignty over Libya. Although the Italians controlled the coast, many of their troops had been killed in battle and nearly 6,000 Ottoman soldiers remained to face an army of nearly 140,000 Italians. As a result, the Ottomans began using guerrilla tactics. Indeed, some "Young Turk" officers reached Libya and helped organize a guerrilla war with local mujahideen. [42] Many local Libyans joined forces with the Ottomans because of their common faith against the "Christian invaders" and started bloody guerrilla warfare. Italian authorities adopted many repressive measures against the rebels, such as public hangings as retaliation for ambushes

At Sciara Sciatt, on the outskirts of Tripoli, on October 23, 1911, Turkish troops massacred around 500 Italian soldiers. 

As a result, the 1911 Tripoli Massacre saw Italian troops kill thousands of citizens in a systematic manner the following day by going through neighbourhoods and gardens one by one, including by setting fire to a mosque that was housing 100 refugees. 

Italian officials made an effort to prevent the massacre's news from spreading, but it rapidly gained international attention.  

To justify their retaliation, the Italians began to display images of the slaughtered Italian soldiers at Sciara Sciat.