Italy’s PM Denounces Olympic Dissenters for being Enemies of Italy
Tensions flared during the opening weekend of the Games, with thousands gathering in Milan to voice opposition over environmental and economic concerns. Demonstrators also expressed anger at the presence of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel supporting security for visiting US officials — personnel whose deployment has been linked with protests in the US after two fatal law enforcement shootings in Minneapolis. Those incidents involved federal agents and sparked widespread demonstrations and national attention in the United States.
About 10,000 people marched through Milan on Saturday, highlighting worries about the Games’ impact and criticizing the involvement of foreign security forces. From that crowd, around 100 people broke away and engaged in violent confrontations with police, who responded with tear gas and water cannon to restore order.
In an Instagram post on Sunday, Meloni drew a clear distinction between volunteers supporting the Games and those she blamed for the unrest. “Then there are those who are enemies of Italy and Italians,” she wrote, singling out protesters and rail saboteurs, and voicing support for law enforcement and transportation staff “whose work will be undermined by these gangs of criminals.”
The Italian Transport Ministry has launched a terrorism inquiry after railway infrastructure near Bologna and Pesaro was deliberately damaged, causing fires, cuts to key lines, and widespread delays affecting thousands of travelers. No group has publicly claimed responsibility for the sabotage.
A spokesperson for the International Olympic Committee said that while peaceful protest is a legitimate expression of opinion, “we draw a line at violence,” adding that it “has no place at the Olympic Games.”
The unrest followed the approval of a new security decree by Meloni’s government that grants police the authority to detain individuals for up to 12 hours if they are suspected of intending to disrupt peaceful demonstrations.
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