Protesters Clash With Security At Rome’s Colosseum Over Gaza And Government
Hundreds of protesters wave Palestinian flags and clash with security at Rome’s Colosseum amid anti-government unrest in Italy.
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Hundreds of young demonstrators waving Palestinian flags clashed with security forces at the gates of Rome’s Colosseum as anti-government unrest swept across Italy over the weekend.
Several hundred students and young protesters briefly took over the nearly 2,000-year-old monument on Saturday, chanting against the war in Gaza and the Italian government, according to the Associated Press (AP). Security staff cleared the crowd soon after.
Protestors waving Palestinian flags storm Roman Colosseum gates as unrest grows https://t.co/9GBrxVYarx https://t.co/VjYERpR0Ub
Saturday’s demonstrations stayed calmer than the previous week’s violence, Al Jazeera reported, which cited the ANSA news agency. Scattered confrontations still broke out in Turin and Rome. Police arrested nine people nationwide and briefly detained another 371.
The protests drew their force from anger over surging living costs, failing public services and the Gaza war, the AP reported. Crowds carried banners that read “No to lies of the state” and shouted insults at the government. A newly formed group calling itself the October 17 Movement organized much of the turnout alongside student federations and grassroots unions, according to Al Jazeera.
In Milan, the government sent 500 soldiers into the streets and posted paratroopers around the Duomo cathedral, the AP noted. Luxury boutiques boarded up their storefronts a week after looting tore through northern cities.
Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said the soldiers could use only plastic restraint ties, and only near train stations. Valter Mazzetti of the FSP police union told the AP that the troops offered fast reinforcement but could not solve chronic staffing shortages.
Brothers of Italy Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni rolled out tougher security measures, including stiffer penalties for minors, after police attributed much of the violence to young people, according to Reuters. Protesters across the continent pressed demands on education, pensions and housing.
The turmoil reached well past Italy, according to the AP. France drew the largest international attention. Demonstrators also filled the streets of Madrid, Lisbon and Tirana.
Most of those arrested were under 18, Al Jazeera reported. Justice Minister Carlo Nordio said that the country needed to “expand the capacity of our youth detention facilities.”
Source: Daily Caller
