Italy’s cabinet has approved an emergency security decree introducing tougher measures following violent demonstrations in Milan, Bologna and Rome, including the deployment of 500 additional soldiers, extending preventive detention for minors to 24 hours and allowing delayed arrests of people suspected of vandalism during protests.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government is responding to widespread damage in Milan, where repair costs have approached €1 million and 14 police officers sustained injuries during clashes.
Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said the government needed a legal framework allowing soldiers to exercise police powers for the next three months, providing additional support to the Carabinieri and police.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani pledged a decisive response, saying the additional troops would help prevent further incidents and stop cities from becoming battlegrounds.
Government raises concerns over online radicalisation
Government officials have expressed particular concern about the profile of those involved in the unrest. Of the 271 people brought in for questioning, 220 were minors who reportedly had no links to traditional political organisations.
Crosetto described the phenomenon as a form of “hybrid warfare” conducted through social media. He argued that algorithms and artificial intelligence could help external actors influence young people and undermine democratic values and institutions.
“Some countries, having studied the minds of our young people through algorithms, know much better than we do how to influence them,” Crosetto said.
His comments highlighted the government’s concerns about the role of online platforms and emerging technologies in shaping young people’s behaviour and potentially encouraging unrest.
Decree tightens measures against juvenile crime
The new decree places tougher measures against juvenile offending at the centre of the government’s security agenda. Matteo Salvini, deputy prime minister and leader of the League party, described the initiative as “a victory for the League”.
The measures include extending preventive detention for minors from 12 to 24 hours and introducing a specific offence for aggravated criminal damage.
The decree also provides for arrests during protests involving acts of destruction, including delayed arrests within 48 hours of the offence.
Salvini said parents must accept both educational and financial responsibility for damage caused by their children. He also proposed denying Italian citizenship to minors convicted of robbery, drug trafficking or vandalism.
President calls for deeper analysis as opposition challenges government
President Sergio Mattarella has intervened in the debate, stating that “every form of violence is unacceptable”. However, he also called for “an intelligent and in-depth analysis” of the unrest, arguing that it involves social groups whose characteristics are unfamiliar.
Opposition leader Giuseppe Conte of the Five Star Movement criticised the government for failing to invest sufficiently in public security. He said Italy lacked 20,000 police officers and dismissed the repeated introduction of short-term decrees after violent incidents as an “illusion” of a solution.
Pierfrancesco Majorino of the Democratic Party also argued that authorities cannot address young people’s anger through repression alone. He called for substantial investment in education and social inclusion, warning that the social contract underpinning social peace appeared increasingly fragile.
The debate highlights competing approaches to the unrest, with the government emphasising stronger enforcement and opposition figures calling for greater investment in policing, education and social policy.
(Source: AMNA)
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