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Crackdown on mafia

John Hooper

Rome: A bloody mafia power struggle appears to have been narrowly averted after dawn raids across the Sicilian capital of Palermo on Tuesday netted 24 alleged Cosa Nostra ``godfathers'', including a mobster said by investigators to be trying to take over as the next capo di tutti i capi (boss of all bosses). Politicians hailed the operation as one of the most damaging launched against the Sicilian mafia. It came two months after the seizure of the crime syndicate's fugitive commander, Bernardo Provenzano, and was made possible, in part, by evidence found at his hideout. Italy's new Interior Minister, Giuliano Amato, said Operation Gotha, as it was codenamed, had lifted the veil on Cosa Nostra's ``transitional administration''. Altogether, 52 warrants were issued before the raids. Seven suspects evaded capture. —

© Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006

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