Italy Protests: Police Raids Target 60 Over Social Media Violence Incitement Across 23 Cities

Following recent street demonstrations and clashes across Italy, the State Police executed approximately 60 searches across 23 cities targeting individuals who allegedly incited violence on chat platforms and social media, Il Sole 24 ORE reported on October 31, 2026. The coordinated nationwide sweep involved the Digos security forces and the Postal Police, aiming to trace participants in preceding unrest and intercept planned disruptions.

Nationwide Raids Span 23 Italian Cities

The judicial police operations stretched across 23 urban centers, including Ancona, Avellino, Bari, Bergamo, Bologna, Bolzano, Brescia, Cagliari, Firenze, La Spezia, Messina, Monza, Napoli, Novara, Parma, Perugia, Ravenna, Reggio Emilia, Roma, Siracusa, Torino, Trieste, and Verona. According to investigative files, authorities targeted individuals who took part in civil disturbances on October 17, 18, and 24, users who displayed blunt objects online, and organizers of subsequent mobilizations.

During the searches, law enforcement recovered five replica handguns, a rudimentary knife, a glass-breaker tool, various blunt instruments, disguised clothing, and 11 mobile phones earmarked for forensic analysis, as detailed by Il Sole 24 ORE. Investigators in Bergamo seized a Beretta 92 FS pellet pistol, steel pliers, a knife, three phones, and garments worn during the October 17 disturbances, alongside plastic masks.

Protests and Clashes in Rome and Turin

The police actions unfolded less than 24 hours after nationwide general strike demonstrations organized by the Unione Sindacale di Base (USB) drew crowds across more than 60 public squares, according to reporting by Sky TG24. While most gatherings remained peaceful, evening tensions escalated in Rome and Turin, involving bottle-throwing, police charges, and water cannons.

In Rome, police identified 369 individuals following demonstrations that wound from Piazza dei Cinquecento to the Fori Imperiali and from Via degli Annibaldi to Piramide, AGI reported. Authorities filed formal charges against seven of those identified, citing aggravated resistance to a public official, face-covering in public places, carrying offensive weapons, and unauthorized road blockades. The Rome police anticrime division initiated procedures to issue mandatory expulsion orders—known as fogli di via—requiring out-of-town participants to leave the capital.

Injuries Among Law Enforcement Personnel

The clashes left a heavy toll on security personnel deployed to maintain public order during the October 30 mobilization. The Coisp police union released a casualty figure stating that 11 police officers and two carabinieri sustained injuries during Friday’s demonstrations, as reported by AGI.

The union specified that injuries included six officers in Mestre, four in Vicenza, and one in Turin, where two carabinieri were also bruised. In Mestre, an officer from the Padua Mobile Unit suffered a compound fracture of the hand requiring surgical intervention, according to Coisp statements covered by Sky TG24.

Forensic Seizures and Digital Evidence

Investigators across multiple jurisdictions recovered specialized gear and digital devices intended to map out coordination networks. In Messina, officers confiscated two blank-firing pistols, a glass breaker, a smoke grenade, a balaclava, a wooden stick, and a baseball bat, while Cagliari authorities seized a blank-firing pistol lacking a red warning cap, according to Sky TG24.

Italy Protests: Police Raids Target 60 Over Social Media Violence Incitement Across 23 Cities — Photo: agi.it

In Turin, police recovered items of clothing identified as goods looted from commercial establishments during the unrest. Meanwhile, digital forensics teams turned their attention to seized hardware: in Bologna, two smartphones contained video footage of violent incidents from October 24 and were slated for immediate analysis by investigators.