 Italy's most renowned commando unit of World War II was "Decima Flottiglia MAS" ("10th Assault Vehicle Flotilla"), which, from mid-1940, sank or damaged a considerable tonnage of Allied ships in the Mediterranean.After Italy surrendered in 1943, some of the "Decima Flottiglia MAS" were on the Allied side of the battle line and fought with the Allies, renaming themselves the "Mariassalto".The others fought on the German side and kept their original name but did not operate at sea after 1943, being mostly employed against Italian partisans; some of its men were involved in atrocities against civilians.