Italy: Riots in Milan and Bologna as Meloni condemns violence
Stones flew outside Milan's cathedral during protests against the high cost of living, and police fired tear gas. In Bologna, ANSA reported seven arrests.
Symbolic image · Photo: Steffen Schmitz / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Protests against the rising cost of living also turned violent in Italy on Saturday. In Milan, police fired tear gas after protesters threw stones in the cathedral square, Italian media reported. According to Reuters, the protest was called by the Italia in Piazza movement. Police in riot gear tried to push masked groups that had broken away from the main march out of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. Shops pulled down their shutters, tourists left the city center, and the Duomo metro station was closed.
Several people were injured and arrested in Milan, according to media reports, though exact figures were not given. In Bologna, police used a water cannon against the crowd; the ANSA news agency reported seven arrests. Alongside the clashes, peaceful rallies were also held, according to Al Jazeera.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who faces a parliamentary election next year, condemned the riots on X: "Demonstrating is a right. Turning our cities into battlefields is not." The riots came on the same day as mass protests in France and rallies in Belgium and Portugal.