Cost of living protest turns violent in Milan

Protests over the cost of living in Milan turned violent on October 17, with police using tear gas and arrests and injuries reported, as demonstrators clashed with officers in the city centre. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned the violence while affirming the right to peaceful protest. Italian media accounts said protesters threw stones and other objects at police near the square in front of Milan’s cathedral. Officers in riot gear fired tear gas and tried to clear hooded protesters from the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, a shopping arcade beside the square. Shops lowered their shutters and tourists left the area, while the Duomo Cathedral metro station was closed during the clashes. Several people were reported injured and arrests were made in Milan. One account put the number of arrests at about 50 and said two police officers were injured; those figures were not confirmed in all reports. The available accounts do not provide a comprehensive tally of injuries or damage. More than 5,000 people joined the Milan mobilisation, according to a report on the demonstration. Protesters raised concerns including inflation, low wages, public healthcare funding and...