Transport Minister
Maurizio Lupi said Monday that he was worried about a new
strategy adopted by hardcore protestors against the TAV
Turin-Lyon high speed rail link.
"I'm worried about the change of strategy" he said after a
Molotov cocktail caused a fault that disrupted railway traffic
on the Rome-Florence high-speed link at the weekend.
He was speaking during a visit to a TAV work site at
Chiomonte, near Turin.
"Being as they can't stop the Chiomonte site, some are
continuing with attacks that on the symbols of high speed rail,"
Lupi said.
Protests against the Turin-Lyon link have frequently
turned violent in recent years.
Critics have said the high-speed Tav project will cost too
much and wreak terrible environmental damage in the Alpine
region of Piedmont.
But the Italian and French governments say it will reduce
highway traffic and in the long run, be good for the
environment.
Last week a Turin court sentenced four 'No-TAV' protestors
to three years, six months each in prison after convicted them
for a May 2013 attack on a TAV site.
But the court acquitted of the four of terrorist charges.
Lupi has said last week that he hoped prosecutors will
appealed.
"If putting on hoods and organising an attack on the State
is not association for terrorist ends, someone must explain to
me what it is," Lupi said.
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