[ItalianStereotype]

the Geneva Convention wasn't signed until 1951, so "war crimes" were pretty commonplace during the two world wars.

that aside, after taking the beaches at Normandy, I'm surprised that the officers themselves weren't offing any German that they could find. the beaches were slaughterhouses and I'd imagine that every soldier who took part saw more carnage than he could humanly cope with. this isn't to say that it isn't tragic that your grandfather and his unit were rounded up and shot one by one, but keep in mind that your grandfather was on the side that was destroying the Allied forces as they hit the beach.