The Italian is the first woman volunteer in the special forces of the International Legion
Julia Skiff is 23 years old and is from the municipality of Myra, near Venice. Three years ago he had to graduate from the Air Force Academy in Pozzuoli and get a booklet for a military pilot. She was expelled for her conflicts with the academy, whose members she accused of harassment and violence. Thus, after the outbreak of war in Ukraine, the girl left for Kyiv, enlisting as a volunteer in the special forces of the International Legion. The Italian became the first female foreign pilot to fight for the liberation of Ukraine.
“I am swimming against the current. “While many are fleeing, I am heading to the scene,” said Julia.
In Italy, she is well known to millions of viewers for her odyssey at the Military Academy, which trains pilots for the armed forces, which was also described by the media. In early 2019, Julia, then 20, declared that she had been harassed and abused by her fellow students at the academy during a so-called “baptism in flight” ritual.
It all starts on April 4, 2018. Then the ritual for her dedication to the profession of military pilot should be held at the school in Latina, where the girl is studying. As documented in the video, fellow students take her off the plane – as the tradition suggests, then begin
to beat her with
steel strips
for 8 minutes,
they throw her against the wing of an airplane and then into a pool. The episode in question was then identified by the academy as a typical action for graduating students. During the ritual in question, the young woman
receives
injuries on
back and back
parts of which
scars remain
for 20 days. Although during the ritual the girl prayed to her colleagues to stop, no one even thought to do so. The scene is also being watched by Julia’s superiors.
The young woman took the course to obtain the dream of a military pilot’s license. In the preliminary selection of thousands of candidates, she is in fourth place. Her desire to become a military pilot is huge, so she doesn’t want to give up her career before she even started. That’s why he tells the story of what happened first only to his father, a former Air Force pilot. He is endlessly surprised by all this and in turn shares it with his friend and former colleague, who is part of the internal hierarchy in the academy. An internal investigation has been launched, but this has not led to anything. From that moment on, however, the harassment of Julia began. She is punished for the smallest things, even for the fact that she pours coffee.
For months, the girl has been the subject of constant harassment by her male colleagues. Thus, she receives penalties for deprivation of leave of up to 60 days. All this allowed her commanders to expel her from the academy without warning on September 6, 2018 due to “unsatisfactory military behavior.” Julia’s poor assessment is exclusively related to her disciplinary punishment and is not accompanied by any psychological assessment.
After what happened, Julia’s father decided to show his former colleagues at the academy
photos and video
from violence,
exercised on his daughter. Until now, he is ashamed to make them available, he is afraid of harming her career.
After that, however, it was the academy that alerted the Military Prosecutor’s Office to the existence of an alleged crime committed by several people. Thus began a case in which 8 sergeants from the 70th Detachment of the Academy in Latina were accused of violence against a colleague.
Julia appealed her expulsion to the Lazio Regional Administrative Court, which ruled to her detriment.
In the autumn of 2021, the Supreme Administrative Court in Rome upheld the order of the District Court and even ordered Julia to pay the costs.
“They ruined my life. I do not want alms, I deserve justice “, the Italian commented to the media.
In November 2021, the trial against the eight accused of violence against Julia began. The second meeting is expected on May 2.
What happened to her also reached the parliament, where, when asked by the Minister of Defense Lorenzo Guerini, he said that
watch carefully
history and
that it will be
uncompromising,
if it turns out that there have been actions incompatible with professional ethics and respect for human dignity. Many deputies who saw the video with the “baptism” ritual also spoke in Julia’s defense. Her story was also told by the show for journalistic investigations “Hyenas” on the TV channel Italy Uno.
In addition to fighting for Kyiv, Julia Skiff is currently reporting from the scene of hostilities on the Hyenas show. It will continue to do so until the end of its mission in Ukraine.
“I only found out now that he was reporting,” said Julia’s father, Dino, the day before the March 23 broadcast of his daughter’s first report. He himself learned that she was leaving for Ukraine just days before she left for Italy by bus.
“I’m worried, but I’m still proud of her strong will, even though it was better to stay home,” said the father.
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