Italy approves sweeping security measures in response to protests

Anti-riot police clash with demonstrators during an anti-government protest organised by the Italia in Piazza movement at Piazza Duomo in Milan on October 17, 2026 [Piero Cruciatti/AFP]

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 participation in a demonstration, tougher penalties for rioters and financial liability for parents whose children take part in vandalism and looting.

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Italy’s Ministry of Defence said the military will help reinforce security at key sites, step up surveillance of sensitive locations and enhance monitoring.

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.

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 €20,000 ($22,460).

Penalties increase if faces are concealed or people are injured.

Authorities can order prompt compensation for any damage inflicted and, in the case of minors, hold their parents liable.

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.

But the cabinet did not approve giving soldiers policing powers, as expected, after opposition from President Sergio Mattarella, Italian media reported.

“Destroying and stealing is not protest, it is crime, and the state’s response must be firm,” Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a social media post after the cabinet meeting.

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’s most violent turmoil in years.

Meloni’s 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.

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.

2026年10月17日，在米兰大教堂广场，意大利广场运动组织的反政府抗议活动中，防暴警察与示威者发生冲突。[Piero Cruciatti/AFP]

意大利已批准部署军队并加大法律处罚力度，以平息该国北部因生活成本上涨而引发的抗议活动。这些抗议活动在周末偶尔演变为暴力事件。

意大利内阁周二批准向米兰派遣 500 名士兵，一项新的法律规定将暴力参与示威活动定为犯罪，对暴徒处以更严厉的处罚，并追究子女参与破坏和抢劫的父母的经济责任。

列表 1/3：法国、意大利、西班牙和葡萄牙的生活成本发生了哪些变化？

法国日益严重的债务困境（共3个问题，此为第2个）：债券市场如何决定各国的借贷成本

葡萄牙生活成本抗议者重返被警方清理的营地（共3条记录，此为第3条）

意大利国防部表示，军方将协助加强重点场所的安全，加强对敏感地点的监视，并加强监控。

周末，意大利北部多个城市爆发骚乱，包括金融中心米兰。在米兰，以年轻人为主的示威人群洗劫商店、砸碎窗户，并与警方发生冲突。示威活动的起因是对飙升的燃油和能源价格、高昂的房租、低工资以及公共服务状况的不满。

作为立即生效的新法律措施的一部分，任何参与至少五人团体并在抗议活动中危害公共安全的人，将面临最高五年监禁和最高 20,000 欧元（22,460 美元）的罚款。

如果遮挡面部或造成人员受伤，处罚将加重。

当局可以责令立即赔偿造成的任何损失，如果是未成年人，还可以追究其父母的责任。

警方将被允许拘留 14 至 17 岁的青少年，即使他们没有犯罪，只要有证据表明他们构成危险，这项权力以前只适用于成年人。

但正如预期的那样，在总统塞尔焦·马塔雷拉的反对下，内阁并未批准赋予士兵警务权力，意大利媒体报道了这一消息。

“破坏和偷窃不是抗议，而是犯罪，国家必须予以坚决回应，”总理乔治娅·梅洛尼在内阁会议后在社交媒体上发帖说。

意大利北部发生的骚乱与邻国法国的骚乱遥相呼应。周六，数十万法国民众走上街头，引发了该国近年来最严重的暴力动乱。

梅洛尼政府还面临着来自意大利南部另一波抗议活动的压力，那里的卡车司机对飙升的柴油价格和不断上涨的生活成本感到愤怒，他们设置路障，扰乱了供应链。

南北双方的抗议者都表示，物价上涨正使许多家庭陷入贫困，这令梅洛尼在 2027 年全国大选前感到担忧。