Italy: Massive protests against the government sweep more than 50 cities

Farmers threw organic fertilizer on the streets of Turin, Friday, at a time when massive demonstrations broke out in more than 50 cities in Italy. Spurred by a wave of similar protests elsewhere in Europe, tens of thousands of Italians took to the streets to protest high costs of living and poor public services, such as health care and education.

The anti-capitalist trade union (Unione Sindacale di Base - USB) led the national action that took place on Friday, with the participation of workers from the public and private sectors. Transport sector workers were scheduled to join the protests, but they backed away from their plans after Transport Minister Matteo Salvini threatened to impose sanctions on the sector.

The USB union urged taxi drivers to go ahead with the strike, despite receiving a similar warning. The largest protest marches took place in Milan, Turin, and the capital, Rome, where young people and adults united to express their anger at Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her right-wing government.

The Ministry of Interior said on Friday morning that it had carried out preventive arrests before the start of the marches to thwart acts of violence, but clashes between demonstrators and police were still taking place in some places. Demonstrators in Milan raised banners bearing anti-government slogans, one of which read: “Down with the Meloni government - rebellion is legitimate.”

In Naples, some demonstrators burned pictures of Meloni. The protests were largely peaceful as they continued into the afternoon.

Although the protests included the entire country, the demands varied from one place to another. In the northern city of Genoa, port workers mobilized against the "militarization" of the port, in an attempt to prevent shipments of Italian-made weapons from being exported to conflict zones, including Israel.

In the neighboring city of Bologna, students called on the government to review education policy. Protests have swept Europe in recent weeks, with hundreds of thousands of people demanding government action to alleviate the burden of rising costs of living.

In France, demonstrations began in late September, when teachers and students protested against the lack of investment in the education sector and deteriorating working conditions. Since then, protests have escalated to reflect broader concerns about the cost of living.

The worsening housing crisis sparked the outbreak of demonstrations in Spain and Portugal, where activists set up camps in the central squares of the capitals of the two countries. Albania witnessed a series of anti-government protests, with thousands taking to the streets to highlight allegations of government corruption and demand the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama.

In Serbia, youth protests succeeded in overthrowing the long-time leader, Aleksandar Vucic, last weekend.