Italy tightens security as students, unions launch nationwide protests 

Italy has tightened security as tens of thousands of students and unions took to the streets across the country.

Marches were held in dozens of cities nationwide on Friday. Rome, Milan and Naples were among those affected by the protests, which targeted soaring living costs, demanded investment in education and called for an end to the wars in the Middle East.

A large police presence was on hand, as the hard-right government tightened security measures in a bid to control potential unrest seen in Italy and other European states in recent weeks.

In Rome, security was stepped up around the Colosseum, Italy’s most visited tourist attraction, while Milan’s cathedral also received special protection.

A few skirmishes between protesters and riot police occurred at the start of a protest in Turin, with other rallies in Bologna and Genoa.

The USB trade union called for a general strike that attracted large numbers of demonstrators, including truck drivers, taxi drivers and farmers. Rallies in recent weeks have demanded an end to higher fuel prices and rising defence spending.

Unions have also issued a joint call with peers in France, Greece, Spain, Turkiye and Morocco to demand an end to the wars in the Middle East, including the war in Gaza and “an end to the militarisation of ports”.

“Ports must not be used for the transport of weapons, ammunition, military equipment and troops,” the statement said. “Dockworkers do not work for war!”

The government last week agreed on a 175 million euro ($195 million) aid package for truck drivers, farmers and fishermen hit by soaring fuel prices linked to the war in the Middle East.

The prices paid in Italy for food, energy, transport and bills have risen by 68 percent since 2000, while the average wage fell by almost 5 percent.

Measures to support young people and families – such as an annual bonus of 2,500 euros for workers under 30 – have also been inserted into the draft 2027 budget currently being discussed among the various governing parties.

“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, stressing that the measures were “not for those who smash windows”.

Following clashes over the weekend of October 17-18 between youth and police in Milan, in which groups of mainly young people looted shops and smashed windows, Meloni toughened laws on public gatherings and eased restrictions on the detention of minors.