During World War II, a sector of the concentration camp was reopened to confine prisoners from the Allied forces who opposed the Axis powers. Put under the control of the Royal Italian Army and later of German units, the camp housed Indian, English, New Zealand, and Pakistani war prisoners. During the war, German General Albert Kesselring had his headquarters, with more than 200 officers and about 1,000 soldiers, established near Albe Castle. The city of Avezzano, having become a transit place at the service of Nazi troops, suffered heavy bombing from the Allies, which caused several civil victims and damages to 70% of the architectural heritage restored a few years after the 1915 earthquake. During the feverish bombing period a lot of prisoners escaped from the camp, managing to find shelter in Marsica mountain villages or in the most inaccessible areas of the Abruzzi Apennines.