Benito Mussolini Mussolini was rescued from captivity in the Gran Sasso raid by German paratroopers and "Waffen-SS" commandos led by Major Otto-Harald Mors. Adolf Hitler, after meeting with the rescued former dictator, then put Mussolini in charge of a puppet regime in northern Italy, the Italian Social Republic (, RSI), informally known as the "Salò Republic". In late April 1945, in the wake of near total defeat, Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci attempted to flee to Switzerland, but both were captured by Italian communist partisans and summarily executed by firing squad on 28 April 1945 near Lake Como. His body was
Clara LaMore years lived with him in Europe until his sudden death in 1970. Clara LaMore Catherine Clara LaMore (born July 2, 1926), also known by her married name Clara Walker, is an American former competition swimmer who represented the United States at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London. LaMore competed in the preliminary heats of the women's 200-meter breaststroke and recorded a time of 3:23.6. LaMore won the AAU breaststroke titles over 200 m (outdoor, 1945), 100 yd (indoor, 1947) and 220 yd (indoor, 1948). She semi-retired from swimming after the 1948 Olympics, graduated from Providence College and worked for a