(Adnkronos) – Tension between shouts, insults and firecrackers in Piazza di Porta San Paolo in Rome where two demonstrations are taking place at the same time on the occasion of April 25th, Liberation Day. On one side the pro-Palestine demonstrators, around 300 people including the Palestinian student movement, antagonists and university collectives, on the other representatives of the Jewish Brigade and the Jewish community. The two sides are separated by armored police vehicles and officers in riot gear.
A protester from the Jewish Brigade group attempted to force the police cordon to reach the pro-Palestine protest but was blocked by the police. At the same time, some stones were thrown from the ranks of the Jewish Brigade towards the group of reporters present.
“Genocides out of history, with resistance always”, is the slogan on the banner displayed by the pro-Palestine demonstrators in the square. “We do not tolerate the symbols of an oppressive state being waved on this day”, shout the demonstrators. A few dozen meters below the tombstones of those killed in the resistance, the Jewish Brigade shouts “Israel, Israel”, singing the Italian anthem.
There are over 600 law enforcement operators, including police, carabinieri and financial police on the field today in Rome for the management of public order today in the capital which has already locked down since yesterday, triggering checks and clean-ups in the area of Porta San Paolo. Here the Jewish community lays a laurel wreath and some left-wing movements, including the antagonists, the Palestinian student movement and university collectives gathered for a demonstration entitled ‘Anti-fascism and anti-Zionism’. And the police will pay maximum attention to this coincidence.
The President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella will lay a laurel wreath at the Altare della Patria in Rome. The head of state will then travel to Civitella Val di Chiana (Arezzo) for the commemoration ceremony in the places of the Nazi-fascist massacre of 29 June 1944.
As every year, the procession of the provincial ANPI of Rome is also planned, which starts at 9 am from Largo Benedetto Bompiani and will arrive in Piazzale Ostiense: around 2 thousand people are expected to participate. A representative of the Municipality, Roberto Salis, and the president of the provincial Anpi Marina Pierlorenzi will speak from the Porta San Paolo stage.
Hundreds of demonstrations are planned for today throughout Italy. In Milan, among others, coordinated by the president of the provincial Anpi Primo Minelli, the national president Gianfranco Pagliarulo, Pif and the mayor Giuseppe Sala will intervene. The writer Antonio Scurati will participate. Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini will also take part in a demonstration in the Lombardy capital, we learned from the communication from the leader of the League, who did not add further details. The PD secretary, Elly Schlein, will also participate in the Milan procession organized by the Anpi for the Liberation Day.
Some moments of tension at the start of the torchlight procession for April 25th occurred last night in Turin. Even before the procession began to march, militants from the social centers and the communist youth front protested against the arrival in Piazza Arbarello of exponents of the radical association Adelaide Aglietta who showed up with flags of Ukraine, Iran and of the EU. Among them also a sign of the Jewish brigade with the Star of David. Chants of ‘NATO out of the march’ and ‘April 25th is not an anniversary now and always resistance’ started up while some exponents of the social centers tore down some Ukrainian flags. Pushes and punches flew. To bring back the personal calm of Digos.
The event ended in Piazza Castello in Turin to the tune of the Ode to Joy and the Italian Anthem. When the authorities left the stage, the members of the section of the social centers who during the interventions had access to smoke bombs, chanted slogans in support of the Palestinian cause and against the police and repeatedly asked to be able to intervene, opened the barriers placed in protection of the stage and they went up unfurling banners against the war and for the freedom of Palestine. The demonstration ended without further tension.
