Student protests in Europe spread to Italy

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Student protests in Europe have spread to Italy, where Italian cities are witnessing confrontations between police and masked protesters, leading to chaos.

Rioters threw Molotov cocktails, firecrackers, and empty bottles at police officers in various cities across the country, in protest against deteriorating school conditions and the high cost of living, according to the British Daily Mail.

Masked students were seen using fire extinguishers against riot police, amid cheers and encouragement from the surrounding crowds.

These national protests are similar to those witnessed in France and Belgium over the past few weeks, where students in those countries - like their counterparts in Italy - expressed their extreme anger at the reality of education.

Many demonstrators also called for a cap on the number of foreign students allowed to study in Italy.

Others protested the inflation of the Italian defense budget, demanding that this money be directed towards the education sector instead of military spending.

In Rome, students marched towards the Ministry of Education, where they threw firecrackers and smoke bombs towards the ministry building.

The protesters repeatedly chanted against the Minister of Education, Giuseppe Valdtara, saying: “Valdtara, get out of the building!” Participants in the riots on Via Marmorata were also seen wearing balaclavas and hoodies.

Local media reported that a group of about 50 people set up barricades using garbage bins in the middle of the road.

The police in Rome announced that they are using video clips to identify those involved in violence during the protests, stressing at the same time that "the actions of this small group did not affect the effectiveness of the strategy to maintain public order."

In the city of Genoa, protests were held against Minister Valdtara and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, with protesters throwing posters depicting them in eggs.

In Turin, the police were forced to use water cannons to disperse the rioters, who responded by throwing stones at the officers, who refused to back down.

In the same city, thousands of protesters headed towards the Regional Education Office, threw eggs at the police, and then set fire to a small tank model made of cardboard, as an expression of their protest against the use of taxpayer money to buy weapons.

A number of teachers were also seen joining the protests, standing between police forces and students as human shields. In a secondary school in the city of Treviso, local media reported that students climbed windows to get out and join the march.

La Repubblica newspaper reported that several Canova High School students jumped through the windows and over the school gates, amid allegations that the school administration closed the exits to prevent them from participating in the protests.

In the city of Bari, students said they were demonstrating against poor educational conditions, which they described as unacceptable at a time when funds allocated to “igniting wars” are increasing.