Anti-Israel protesters rally across Italy after unions call to ‘denounce the genocide in Gaza’

ROME, Italy — Cities across Italy see pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel protests, strikes, and blockades, responding to calls from unions to “denounce the genocide in Gaza” and for diplomatic and economic sanctions against Israel.

In Rome, hundreds of high school students gather outside Termini train station, waving Palestinian flags and chanting “Free Palestine!”

Michelangelo, 17, tells AFP he was there to support “a population that is being exterminated.”

Francesca Tecchia, 18, is protesting “for the first time,” because “what is happening (in Gaza) is too important,” she says.

“Italy must come to a standstill today,” says Federica Casino, a 52-year-old worker protesting with the students for Gaza’s “dead children and destroyed hospitals.”

“Italy talks but does nothing,” she says.

There are also protests in northern cities Milan and Turin, the central city of Florence, and southern cities Naples, Bari, and Palermo.

Dockworkers in Genoa and Livorno in the center-north blocked the ports, according to Italian news agencies.

In Rome, many buses are not running and the metro service was disrupted, AFP reporters say.

Israel has denied allegations of genocide, saying that its military operation is targeted at destroying the Hamas terror group and freeing hostages kidnapped during the October 7, 2023, massacre that sparked the war.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.