HIBAPRESS
The Italian city of Milan witnessed confrontations between groups of youths and police forces for the second consecutive day on Sunday, which included acts of vandalism and looting targeting commercial shops and public property in the city center. Authorities have arrested about 70 people since the outbreak of the unrest on Saturday, on the sidelines of a protest demonstration against the rising cost of living.
The Italian news agency "ANSA" reported that the confrontations began on Saturday, coinciding with a licensed protest against the high cost of living, before resuming on Sunday in the vicinity of the Cathedral Square, which forms the historical and tourist heart of Milan, the economic capital of Italy. Police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse groups of protesters, after young men, mostly masked, hurled projectiles at security vehicles, while acts of vandalism spread to the adjacent commercial streets.
Looting targeted a large store on "Via Torino," one of the most prominent commercial streets leading to the Cathedral Square, and garbage bins and motorcycles and bicycles were vandalized. The cities of Bologna and Turin in the north of the country also witnessed similar disturbances, raising fears of a widening scope of violence associated with the protests.
Against the backdrop of renewed confrontations, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called for a security meeting on Monday to discuss the developments and necessary measures to deal with the violence. Meloni stated on the "X" platform that those involved in vandalism are people who exploit demonstrations to sow chaos and attack security forces, emphasizing that "protesting is a right, but vandalizing our cities is not a right."
For his part, the mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, who belongs to the center-left, expressed his concern over what the city has witnessed, pointing out that he saw broken shop windows, looted stores, and frightened citizens. He added, in a statement to "ANSA," that what happened is part of a phenomenon witnessed in many cities around the world, expressing his fears of its continuation and widening scope.
These developments come in the context of protests against the rising cost of living in Italy, amid anticipation of the measures that will result from the upcoming security meeting to contain the unrest, at a time when the country is approaching the elections scheduled for 2027.
