Riots in Turin: Meloni government condemns violence against police Former head of government of the Soviet Union dies

Clashes broke out between protesters and police in the northern Italian city of Turin on Wednesday. According to eyewitnesses, about fifty people from the autonomous area tried to free a man from Morocco who was to be taken in a patrol car for extradition to a so-called repatriation center. Some of them surrounded the car, tried to open the doors and crash into it – without success.

The man was then taken to police headquarters, where riots broke out again. Several cars in the area were reportedly damaged. According to the police, at least five suspects have been temporarily arrested. A police officer was injured. The Moroccan is accused of smearing offensive texts on the walls of a subway.

The right-wing government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned the riots in Turin. Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi spoke of a “climate of resentment and mistrust that law enforcement and police are exposed to today.”

A debate over police brutality has been going on for days in Italy after security forces in Florence and Pisa took massive action against participants in pro-Palestinian rallies. President Sergio Mattarella publicly warned Meloni’s government that police “must not enforce their authority with batons.” Their task is to protect public order and freedom of expression. (sda/dpa/lyn)