Tens of thousands of people, mostly students and workers, took to the streets across Italy on Friday to demand higher wages and stronger public services, protest against the rising cost of living and oppose increased military spending, Reuters reported. The grassroots union Unione Sindacale di Base (USB) called a 24-hour general strike, with protests planned in more than 40 cities.

Source: Reuters

Al Jazeera reported that marches were held in dozens of cities including Rome, Milan and Naples, that security was tightened around the Colosseum in Rome and Milan's cathedral, and that the strike drew truck drivers, taxi drivers and farmers alongside students and union members. Unions in Italy, France, Greece, Spain, Turkiye and Morocco have also jointly called for an end to what they describe as the militarisation of ports and for an end to the wars in the Middle East, Al Jazeera said.

Source: Al Jazeera via People Daily

Water cannon in Turin and Rome, eight detained

The demonstrations were largely peaceful, although tensions flared in some areas, Reuters said. In Turin, police used a water cannon to push back students and left-wing activists who approached security cordons protecting the prefecture building. In Rome, a large march passed near the Colosseum, where protesters said they planned to set up tents and remain over the weekend; in the evening a large group tried to march towards parliament, prompting police to use water cannon, and eight people were detained after repeatedly trying to break through police barricades, the Italian news agency ANSA reported. In Milan, protesters marched onto the city's ring road before ending the march in front of the Politecnico di Milano university.

Genoa port: where living costs meet the anti-arms protest

Around 15,000 port workers, students and other demonstrators entered the port of Genoa, joining similar protests in Europe and elsewhere against the use of ports for arms shipments and highlighting the deaths of seafarers in conflicts from the Gulf to the Black Sea, Reuters reported. The day came after clashes earlier this month in which protesters fought with police, looted shops and vandalised property. A wave of protests has swept European countries including France, Spain, Belgium and Albania, driven by grievances including the cost of living.

The government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni last week agreed a 175 million euro aid package — yaani 17.5 crore euros — for truck drivers, farmers and fishermen affected by soaring fuel prices linked to the war in the Middle East, and a draft 2027 budget under discussion includes a proposed annual bonus of 2,500 euros for workers under 30, Al Jazeera reported.

Sources: Reuters; Al Jazeera; Euronews reporting on the USB strike call and security preparations.