Turin – Occupied Polytechnic, between truncheons and fascist salutes, the anger of the students “No more police inside the University”
There were clashes at the Polytechnic between the occupying students and security.
The children, without interrupting lessons, occupied some classrooms: the main hall and another space dedicating them to Sufian Tayeh, teacher and scientist killed during the invasion of Gaza, and Shireen Abu Akleh, journalist killed by the Israeli army.
Chaos when a security guard gave the Roman salute and the police hit the students with truncheons. The boys, meanwhile, were unable to obtain a meeting with the Rector to ask for the termination of the agreements with Israeli universities and war companies.
On Thursday morning, 9 students chained themselves to the main gate and others tried to reach the Rector’s officebut they were stopped by security.
In the afternoon, the police intervened and there were further clashes, with truncheon strikes against students and a fascist salute from a security guard, who was then removed by his colleagues.
“Yesterday the Rectorate used real armies of private security and forces from the Turin Police Headquarters – is the note released by the students – “We tried to enter the Rectorate, for 30 days they have decided that entry is prohibited in that place only for certain students. Private security decides what can and cannot be done. In recent days they have behaved in an unacceptable manner, physically and verbally threatening, harassing, showing up at the workplace drunk. Yesterday they decided to put out a smoke bomb on the skin of a protester, they threw us to the ground, threatened us, grabbed us by the neck and within them they sympathize with the neo-fascism that they express in words and gestures. We ask that the DES company be removed immediately from the supervision of the Polytechnic and that the Rector take a position on all this. Yesterday there was also repeated violence by the state police inside the Polytechnic. Their role was to surround one of our comrades and beat him to death for 5 minutes. We request that the police car never enter the Polytechnic again and we ask that the Rector express his opinion on this too”.
The Polytechnic also quickly condemned the fascist gesture. “The Polytechnic of Turin firmly condemns the very serious episode that occurred during yesterday’s protests: according to press reconstructions and videos published on social media, a security officer gave the ‘Roman salute’ to the demonstrators. The University completely dissociates itself from this fact, which profoundly undermines the principles that inspire our institution and the democratic ones of the Italian Constitution. The company providing the service was immediately requested to proceed with the necessary actions. The University is also taking appropriate action to protect itself and its image. The University is inspired by the values of legality fundamental for the serenity of its community”.
