Italy to deploy 500 troops with police powers to Milan after clashes and looting

Italy will deploy 500 military personnel with judicial police powers to Milan following weekend clashes and looting, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced Tuesday, vowing the government would respond "with great firmness" to the violence that spread from French protests into Italian cities. The unrest, which hit Milan, Turin and Bologna, involved cost-of-living demonstrations that descended into violence. Proposed measures include extending preventive detention from 12 to 24 hours for minors, deferred arrests for group property damage, bans on gatherings for public order threats, and harsher penalties for vandalism committed by groups, with potential prison sentences up to five years and fines up to €15,000. The government is also considering strengthening juvenile justice systems, tightening penalties for parents of violent minors, and adding new offences for organised violence during protests. The League party has called for mandatory arrests for devastation acts and deferred arrests within 48 hours, though final details remain unconfirmed.