Italy's Chief of Police Lamberto
Giannini on Monday promised that the authorities were giving top
priority to a wave of violent actions staged by extremist groups
to protest against the plight of jailed anarchist leader Alfredo
Cospito.
The 55-year-old is in poor health after being on hunger striker
for over 100 days to protest against being held under the tough
41 bis jail regime usually reserved for mafia bosses.
Italian diplomatic offices in Berlin and Barcelona were
subjected to vandalism last week and anarchist groups were
engaged in violent clashes with police in the Trastevere
district of Rome on Saturday night.
A policeman was injured in those clashes and 41 people have been
cited over them.
Anarchists are also thought to have been behind a Molotov
cocktail attack on a Rome police station at the weekend.
These are only the latest in a series of such acts in Italy and
abroad linked to anarchists in recent months.
"This violence and these protests are being repeated and the
situation will have to be examined with the maximum attention,"
said Giannini, commenting on the Rome clashes.
"We are investigating to find out who is responsible.
"Over 40 people have been identified and reported to the
judicial authorities".
The Cospito case and the related protests are set to be among
the issues addressed at a meeting of Premier Giorgia Meloni's
cabinet later on Monday.
On Sunday Meloni's office put out a statement saying the
government would not be intimidated by the protests calling for
Cospito to be switched to a softer jail regime.
"The State does not make pacts with threat-makers," a statement
said.
Cospito is serving 20 years for a bomb attack on a Carabinieri
police training academy at Fossano near Cuneo in Piedmont in
2006 and a further 10 years and eight months for kneecapping
Ansaldo Nucleare Managing Director Roberto Adinolfi in Genoa in
2012.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA