Thousands of people took to the streets in several Italian cities for a second night of protests on Tuesday following the death of a migrant during a police operation, with demonstrations reported in Milan, Naples and Florence.
Initial reports said the protests concluded peacefully. The previous evening, riots had broken out in Bologna, where the 42-year-old Moroccan man died on Sunday. Prosecutors have since opened an investigation into the death.
According to rescue services, at least 11 people – both police officers and protesters – were injured during clashes between police and demonstrators in Bologna on Monday evening. Police said 64 officers were injured.
In response to the protests, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni promised to investigate “any responsibilities with the utmost rigour.” The far-right prime minister also condemned violence against the police.
The death of Abderrahim Fakir, who had lived in Italy for more than 30 years, has dominated Italian headlines since Sunday. Demonstrators again chanted “Justice for Fakir” at the rallies. Many drew comparisons with the case of George Floyd, a black man who died during a police operation in the United States in May 2020.
Fakir died on a street in Bologna on Sunday after residents called the police. A video shows him being pinned face-down to the ground by two officers, his hands cuffed behind his back. He can be heard repeatedly crying out: “Help! Enough, enough!” The officers only released him after several minutes when he stopped moving. A doctor then pronounced him dead.
Investigators are hoping the autopsy, due to take place later this week, will shed light on the circumstances of his death. The body camera of one of the two officers involved has been handed over to prosecutors, along with a video filmed by a neighbour who witnessed the scene. Preliminary investigations for negligent homicide have been opened against the two officers, as well as against four paramedics who initially only watched without intervening.
Meloni called the situation in Bologna “unacceptable,” saying Sunday’s incident must be investigated with the “utmost rigour” and said the truth must be “pursued to the very end, without prejudice and without making exceptions for anyone.”
However, she warned that “nothing can justify violence against law enforcement.”
“Those who chose to use this incident as a pretext to set the city ablaze, assault officers, and sow violence – also endangering the safety of innocent bystanders completely unrelated to the unrest – were not seeking the truth: they were seeking confrontation,” the Italian leader added.