The Kyunghyang Shinmun reported on the 20th that protests over the cost of living in Milan and other northern cities have turned into clashes. The demonstrations are against rising prices and worsening public services, and truckers protesting higher fuel prices are disrupting logistics. The protest itself took place last weekend, and the report carried photos from the 17th.

The paper said that in a protest that began peacefully, some masked participants threw stones and bottles at police, smashed shop windows and looted goods. More than 270 people were reportedly detained in Milan, about 80% of them minors. These figures come from that report; an official count was not confirmed in this paper's reporting.

Government response

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni held an emergency meeting the day before, and the cabinet was due to finalize measures on the 20th. Five hundred additional soldiers will work with police in Milan. Access to parts of the city center is to be restricted, and preventive detention of youths judged to be at risk is under consideration.

Defense Minister Guido Crosetto described the unrest as ‘a kind of hybrid war’ against the state waged through social media and other channels. The report does not provide specific evidence for that claim, and whether measures such as preventive detention of youths will be adopted is not yet known.

Damage to shops and industry

Shops in central Milan cut their hours or closed early, and some put protective boards over their windows. Local pasta maker Lummo halted production because of a shortage of raw materials, the paper said. There is concern that continued trucker protests could spread logistics disruption to other sectors.

The exact size of the protests, the number of injured and the final content of the government's measures were not confirmed at the time of writing. Unrest in other European cities and the market reaction are covered in a separate article.