Violent street clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement officers have flared across several major cities in Italy and in central Barcelona, prompting police to deploy tear gas and water cannons to disperse crowds setting fires and hurling projectiles.
In Italy, security forces faced unrest across multiple urban centers. Officers in Rome deployed tear gas and fired water cannons as protesters threw bottles during a march through the streets. Police in Turin also used tear gas after crowds targeted security personnel with bottles and fireworks. In Bologna, law enforcement pushed back demonstrators who hurled volleys of firecrackers and bottles, while police cordons in Milan and Florence successfully prevented protesters from gaining access to central city districts.
Alongside the street confrontations, Italian authorities conducted more than 150 property searches across Milan, neighbouring Monza, and 20 other cities. The operation, reported by the ANSA news agency, was connected to unrest from previous demonstrations as police investigated suspected plots to launch attacks on officers, destroy vehicles, and carry out arson. Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi stated that security had been reinforced in sensitive urban zones and promised that authorities would respond firmly to any act of violence.
In Spain, disorder escalated in central Barcelona following a youth-led demonstration. Hundreds of protesters dressed in black gathered at Catalonia Square under the hashtag "Institut Indignats", taking inspiration from the "Lycees Indignes" student movement in France. The protest turned violent as certain demonstrators looted retail shops, set fire to rubbish bins, and threw stones and bottles at police lines, prompting an immediate police charge.
When crowds dispersed into surrounding side streets after the police intervention, additional clashes broke out. The violence left several individuals injured and resulted in multiple arrests. The confrontations occurred close to a long-standing housing rights encampment, situated amid crowds of local residents and tourists. In response, Barcelona's municipal police, the Guardia Urbana, shut down several major central thoroughfares, while local shopkeepers lowered security shutters to protect their businesses from vandalism.
Salvador Illa, president of the Catalan regional government, strongly condemned the violence in a statement published on the X platform. "An attack, a threat or an act of causing damage is not a democratic right. Anyone who does this will pay the price," Illa wrote, emphasizing that violence has no justification.
