Footage of the Italian police striking students who support Palestinians has sparked widespread outrage in Italy today, Friday, prompting the opposition to call for the Interior Minister to appear before Parliament. The police confronted student marches in the cities of Florence and Pisa in the Tuscany region, and images of police officers using batons to strike protesters in Pisa have ignited a wave of anger on social media and among politicians.
Videos showed students retreating during what appeared to be a peaceful demonstration under a barrage of blows from police officers. One young woman was heard screaming, "Is this how you hit your children?"
Democratic Party leader from the center-left, Elly Schlein, shared a video on Facebook showing "unacceptable scenes of police cornering students in an alley and attacking and beating them."
Enzo Letizia, president of the National Union of Police Officers, stated that student protests are often infiltrated by "expert provocateurs" and that judgments should not be made until the investigation is complete.
