Italian police clash with protesters in Milan and Bologna as Meloni condemns violence

Protests against inflation and low wages turned violent in Milan and Bologna on Saturday, with police using tear gas and water cannons as clashes erupted, prompting Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to condemn the unrest while defending peaceful demonstrations. In Milan, demonstrators threw stones at police in Piazza Duomo, vandalized property, and forced the temporary closure of the metro station, while in Bologna, hooded youths attacked the central railway station with projectiles, leading to at least seven arrests and the station's precautionary closure. Meloni urged opposition parties to unequivocally condemn the violence, calling perpetrators "thugs who exploit demonstrations to sow chaos." The protests, organized under the "Italy in the Square" banner, drew over 5,000 participants in Milan and focused on rising living costs, low wages, and underfunded public services, with around 50 people detained in Milan. Similar unrest occurred in France, where about 550,000 protested and roughly 400 were arrested.