Tens of thousands of students and workers marched across major Italian cities, demanding increased education funding and urgent relief from soaring living costs. The coordinated rallies follow weeks of student-led tent camps and school occupations, culminating in a general strike that brought various labor sectors directly into the streets alongside disgruntled youths.

Demonstrators openly took aim at the policies of the right-wing European regime led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, citing stagnating wages, surging fuel prices, and heavily inflated military spending. In Rome, young protesters argued that they had reached a breaking point, allegedly struggling under the immense weight of exorbitant tuition fees and unbearable rental costs that heavily burden families.

The USB trade union spearheaded the general action, drawing truck drivers, taxi operators, and farmers into the demonstrations. While public transport disruptions remained relatively controlled, marchers in Rome paraded past historical landmarks chanting slogans against military budgets in favor of social housing. Minor scuffles with riot police were reported in Turin and Milan, prompting authorities to ramp up security around prominent national monuments following previous bouts of unrest.

Source: www.dw.com