Thousands of people protested on Saturday in Italy’s largest cities against the government and the high cost of living. Demonstrators clashed with police in Rome, Milan and Turin. Reinforced police and military forces were keeping order.
In central Milan, a group of protesters tried to break through police barricades during a demonstration of more than 5,000 people, most of them young. Some shopkeepers, fearing clashes, closed stores along the march route.
About 200 college and high school students took part in a rally in front of Milan’s well-known Teatro Strehler. Their banners expressed solidarity with protesting young people in France.
In all, several antigovernment protests were held Saturday in the Lombardy capital.
Clashes with police broke out in Rome near the Colosseum, when demonstrators changed their route and approached the Arch of Constantine, where there are always many tourists.
Two previously registered gatherings took place in the Eternal City at the same time: a demonstration organized by the far right and a protest against wars.
Before the demonstrations, Rome police detained more than 40 young people during preventive checks. They were carrying balaclavas and other items indicating an intention to take part in disturbances.
Hundreds of people protested in Turin. Incidents occurred there as well: Police officers were pelted with bottles and firecrackers. Officers used batons and tear gas.
In Bologna, demonstrators chanted slogans against police officers and threw firecrackers.
In Naples, a group protesting the high cost of living applauded police officers when they loosened their security cordon and moved a few meters away from the protesters’ route. The demonstration passed peacefully.
Earlier on Saturday, Milan police detained a 30-year-old man, the founder of the so-called October 17 Movement, who after violent clashes in the city the previous week had called on a social media platform for people to take part in Saturday’s demonstrations. He has been charged with incitement to violence.
Media reported that the detained man is a 30-year-old Italian citizen of Moroccan descent, a researcher and former contributor to one of the country’s largest newspapers and to the ISPI think tank.
From Rome, Sylwia Wysocka (PAP)
