Italy Sends 500 Troops to Milan and Rewrites Protest Law After a Weekend of Rioting
Meloni's cabinet approved a new protest offence, fines of up to 20,000 euros and detention powers for 14 to 17 year olds, but stopped short of giving soldiers policing powers.
Wednesday, October 21, 2026/3 min read
Italy answered a weekend of looting in Milan with soldiers and a harder law. On Tuesday the cabinet approved a package that sends 500 troops to the city, creates a new offence of violent participation in a demonstration and lets police hold teenagers as young as 14 who have committed no crime, Al Jazeera reported. The measures take effect immediately.
The trigger was Saturday's march in Milan's Piazza Duomo, organised by the Italia in Piazza movement over living costs and poor public services. It began peacefully. By evening, several hundred hooded protesters, many believed to be minors, were burning bins and looting shops in the centre.
What does Italy's new protest law do?
Anyone in a group of at least five who endangers public safety at a protest now faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to 20,000 euros, with heavier penalties if faces are covered or people are hurt. Parents can be made financially liable when their children take part in vandalism or looting, and authorities can order prompt compensation for damage.
The most contested change concerns minors. Police may now detain 14 to 17 year olds who have not committed an offence if there is evidence they pose a danger, a power that previously applied only to adults.
The cabinet did not give soldiers policing powers, as had been widely expected. Italian media attributed that to opposition from President Sergio Mattarella, according to Al Jazeera. The troops will protect key sites and extend surveillance and monitoring instead, the Defence Ministry said.
How bad was the violence in Milan?
On Monday, shops on Via Montenapoleone, home to Chanel, Tiffany and Dior, closed early and removed stock from their windows, the Cyprus Mail reported. Decathlon, Arc'teryx and Vodafone stores were ransacked over the weekend. Police detained 271 young people in Milan on Sunday, and 32 of them were arrested, among them minors and foreign nationals. Saturday's clashes across Milan, Bologna, Brescia, Bergamo and Turin produced 28 arrests, according to a police report cited in the same account.
Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini announced the troop deployment on Monday with the line "From words to action". Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni argued that destroying and stealing is crime, not protest, and that the state's response had to be firm.
Why are Italians protesting?
The anger is the same one that filled French streets. We reported on the half a million marchers in France on Saturday, where fuel prices and schools collided. In Italy, protesters cite soaring fuel and energy bills, high rents, low wages and weak public services. In the south, truck drivers angry about diesel prices have set up roadblocks that are disrupting supply chains.
Behind it sits the war on Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which has kept energy costs high across Europe since February.
What happens next?
Meloni faces a national election in 2027, and a law that treats a teenager at a demonstration as a possible threat is certain to be tested in court and in parliament. Rights groups have not yet answered in the reports we have seen, but the age limit is the clause to watch. The bigger risk for the government is that tougher penalties do nothing to lower a diesel bill, and the roadblocks in the south are a reminder that the grievance is not confined to young people in Milan.
Published in The Outspoken Digest
Editorial desk
Outspoken Digest News DeskReports for The Outspoken Digest across Latest Trends, Sports, Nutrition, Crypto.
Newsletter
The Digest, in your inbox
One edition, sent when it is ready. No noise, and your address is never passed on.
Read Next
More Latest Trends →
France Lines Up an Extra 200,000 Tonnes of Gulf Diesel a Month as Macron Tours the Gulf
Oct 21, 2026/2 min read
More Than 250,000 Have Fled Yemen's Fighting Since July as a Houthi Missile Strike Kills Dozens of Recruits
Oct 21, 2026/2 min read
King Charles Hosts Oman's Sultan at Windsor and Praises Muscat's Role in Reopening Hormuz
Oct 21, 2026/2 min read
NATO Sends More Patrol Planes to the Black Sea After a Run of Drone Strikes on Merchant Ships
Oct 21, 2026/2 min read