OMM Newsroom
Police arrested 28 people, including 12 minors, after clashes at cost-of-living protests in several Italian cities on Saturday, while tensions continued in central Milan on Sunday, Anadolu Agency reported.
Police said 197 people were identified and taken to police stations, and 43 were reported to judicial authorities. Their overall tally recorded 141 injured law enforcement officers.
Clashes and arrests in several cities
Organized by the Italia in Piazza movement, the demonstrations opposed rising living costs, fuel prices and tax pressures. Police estimated that around 5,000 people took part in Milan, 3,000 in Turin, 2,000 in Bologna, 600 in Brescia and 800 in Bergamo.
In Milan, groups threw stones, bottles, firecrackers and barriers at officers, who responded with tear gas and water cannon. Shops were damaged and looted around the city centre, and a Carabinieri vehicle was destroyed.
Police arrested 17 people in Milan. Retail association Confcommercio estimated that damage to shops and businesses exceeded €500,000 ($561,860), according to Sky TG24.
In Turin, police arrested an adult for resisting an officer and three minors who were allegedly carrying Molotov cocktails. A group also entered the “Feltrinelli” bookstore at Porta Nuova station and threw books onto the floor.
In Bologna, police arrested five minors after clashes near the railway station, where demonstrators threw bottles, stones and barriers. Officers used tear gas and water cannon to disperse them.
Italian leaders condemn violence
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed solidarity with law enforcement and urged opposition parties to unequivocally condemn the violence. She also acknowledged that thousands of people had demonstrated peacefully.
Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said his League party would resubmit a parliamentary proposal requiring organizers of demonstrations considered risky to provide financial guarantees to cover potential damage.
Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala said protesters’ grievances were understandable but that violence against officers and extensive damage to the city were unjustifiable.
Bologna Mayor Matteo Lepore also condemned the unrest and urged young people to distance themselves from those using demonstrations as a pretext for violence.
