{"id":10310,"date":"2026-10-21T04:54:57","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T04:54:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=10310"},"modified":"2026-10-21T04:54:57","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T04:54:57","slug":"italy-approves-sweeping-security-measures-in-response-to-protests-protests-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=10310","title":{"rendered":"Italy approves sweeping security measures in response to protests | Protests News"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Published On 21 Oct 2026<\/span>21 Oct 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Italy has approved the deployment of troops and tougher legal penalties in a bid to quell cost-of-living protests in the north of the country that occasionally turned violent over the weekend.<\/p>\n

The Italian cabinet on Tuesday approved sending 500 troops to Milan, a new legal offence covering violent participation in a demonstration, tougher penalties for rioters and financial liability for parents whose children take part in vandalism and looting.<\/p>\n

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Italy\u2019s Ministry of Defence said the military will help reinforce security at key sites, step up surveillance of sensitive locations and enhance monitoring.<\/p>\n

Unrest swept northern Italian cities at the weekend, including the financial capital Milan, where groups of mainly young people looted shops, smashed windows and clashed with the police. The demonstrations were driven by anger over soaring fuel and energy prices, high rents, low wages and the state of public services.<\/p>\n

Public safety<\/h2>\n

As part of the new legal measures, which take effect immediately, anyone who takes part in a group of at least five people and endangers public safety during protests faces up to five years in prison and a maximum fine of \u20ac20,000 ($22,460).<\/p>\n

Penalties increase if faces are concealed or people are injured.<\/p>\n

Authorities can order prompt compensation for any damage inflicted and, in the case of minors, hold their parents liable.<\/p>\n

Police will be allowed to detain youths aged between 14 and 17, even if they have not committed a crime, provided there is evidence they pose a danger, extending powers that previously applied only to adults.<\/p>\n

But the cabinet did not approve giving soldiers policing powers, as expected, after opposition from President Sergio Mattarella, Italian media reported.<\/p>\n

\u201cDestroying and stealing is not protest, it is crime, and the state\u2019s response must be firm,\u201d Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a social media post after the cabinet meeting.<\/p>\n

Echoing protests<\/h2>\n

The disturbances in northern Italy echoed riots in neighbouring France, where hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets on Saturday in some of the country\u2019s most violent turmoil in years.<\/p>\n

Meloni\u2019s government is also facing mounting pressure from a separate wave of protests in southern Italy, where truck drivers angered by soaring diesel prices and the rising cost of living have staged roadblocks that are disrupting supply chains.<\/p>\n

Protesters in both the north and the south say rising prices are pushing families into poverty, a concern for Meloni ahead of the 2027 national elections.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Published On 21 Oct 202621 Oct 2026 Italy has approved the deployment of troops and tougher legal penalties in a bid to quell cost-of-living protests in the north of the country that occasionally turned violent over the weekend. The Italian cabinet on Tuesday approved sending 500 troops to Milan, a new legal offence covering violent…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10311,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_templately_pack_id":"","_templately_imported_at":"","_templately_source":"","_templately_import_session_id":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10310","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-international-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t