Protests sweep Italy as demonstrators seize the Colosseum and burn Meloni portrait in Turin

Saturday night saw coordinated protests across several Italian cities. In Rome, about fifty hooded activists briefly took over the Colosseum, prompting panic among visitors and a swift police response that included water cannon use near the Quirinale. Meanwhile, in Turin, a crowd set fire to a portrait of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni displayed in Piazza Castello, an incident that went viral on social media.

Police operations across the country resulted in hundreds of detentions, with more than a hundred of those being minors, and nine formal arrests. Security checks before the demonstrations involved identity checks and the confiscation of face-covering clothing and potential weapons. Additional clashes occurred in Florence, where tear gas was deployed, and in Milan, where a planned occupation of the cathedral was foiled, aided by the presence of 500 army personnel in the city centre.