Tens of thousands of students and union members took to the streets across Italy on Friday, with marches held in dozens of cities as demonstrators demanded action on soaring living costs, greater investment in education, and an end to the wars in the Middle East.
Rome, Milan and Naples were among the cities affected. Security was tightened around major landmarks, with a heightened police presence deployed near Rome's Colosseum and Milan's cathedral.
Skirmishes broke out between protesters and riot police at the start of a demonstration in Turin. Other rallies took place in Bologna and Genoa.
The USB trade union called a general strike that drew large numbers of demonstrators, including truck drivers, taxi drivers and farmers. Recent rallies have also targeted higher fuel prices and rising defence spending.
Unions issued a joint statement alongside counterparts in France, Greece, Spain, Turkiye and Morocco, calling for an end to the wars in the Middle East, including the war in Gaza, and demanding "an end to the militarisation of ports."
"Ports must not be used for the transport of weapons, ammunition, military equipment and troops," the statement read. "Dockworkers do not work for war!"
The Italian government last week approved a 175 million euro ($195 million) aid package for truck drivers, farmers and fishermen affected by soaring fuel prices linked to the conflict in the Middle East.
Prices paid in Italy for food, energy, transport and household bills have risen by 68 percent since 2000, while the average wage has fallen by almost 5 percent over the same period.
Measures to support young people and families have been included in the draft 2027 budget currently under discussion among governing parties. These include an annual bonus of 2,500 euros for workers under the age of 30.
"I hope this can provide answers for young people in general… who feel that the state doesn't care about them," Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said at a news conference on Wednesday, adding that the measures were "not for those who smash windows."
The security crackdown follows clashes on the weekend of October 17-18 in Milan, during which groups of mainly young people looted shops and smashed windows. In response, Meloni toughened laws on public gatherings and eased restrictions on the detention of minors.
