Naples was the most bombed Italian city in World War II. There were about 200 air strikes between 1940 to 1944 by Allied forces, with 180 raids on the city in 1943. Estimates of civilian casualties vary between 20,000 to 25,000 killed.

In Naples, the primary targets were the port facilities at the extreme eastern end of the Port of Naples as well as the rail, industrial and petroleum facilities in the eastern part of the city and the steel mill to the west, in Bagnoli.

The largest raid was on 4 August 1943 by 400 B-17 planes of the Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) which targeted Axis submarine base at Naples. The Church of Santa Chiara was destroyed in this raid but was later rebuilt. The Santa Maria di Loreto hospital was also destroyed in the bombing of Naples.