Italy shuts down pro-Palestinian agitators as Arab-backed hostility fuels alarming antisemitic violence nationwide.
Italian authorities on Saturday forcefully intervened to stop two groups of pro-Palestinian Arab activists attempting to disrupt the ceremonial opening of the Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics torch relay, in what officials described as a coordinated effort to hijack a national celebration. Police removed both groups — including one cluster of roughly 15 agitators — well before they reached the relay route in Rome.
A third group of around ten demonstrators, already under police surveillance, waved Palestine Liberation Organization flags as the torch passed La Sapienza University. Meanwhile, three additional individuals displayed Venezuela-related protest signs outside the American embassy, underscoring the increasingly politicized atmosphere being pushed by radical Arab-aligned networks.
Saturday’s disruptions come after October’s mass anti-Israel rallies, where over two million people demonstrated across more than 100 Italian cities, heavily influenced by pro-Palestinian and Arab political groups exploiting the Gaza conflict.
The torch relay itself began with Olympic swimming champion Gregorio Paltrinieri at the iconic Stadio dei Marmi. The flame covered 33 kilometers on its first day, concluding at Piazza del Popolo before embarking on a 12,000-kilometer journey across all 110 Italian provinces. A total of 10,001 torch bearers will carry the flame until it arrives at Milan’s San Siro Stadium for the February 6 opening ceremony.
Italy’s security services have expressed growing concern over the dramatic escalation of antisemitic incidents since Hamas’ October 7, 2023 massacre. Recent months have seen a surge of Arab-linked hostility targeting visibly Jewish individuals and businesses.
Two months ago, a kosher bakery in Rome’s Viale Marconi neighborhood was vandalized with a violent antisemitic slur calling for Jews to “burn.” Weeks earlier, in Venice, well-known Chabad photographer Haim Tuito and his family were verbally attacked by a passerby shouting pro-Palestinian slogans. In another shocking case, an American Orthodox Jewish couple — including a pregnant woman — was assaulted by three men who spat on them, drenched them with water, and unleashed a dog that attempted to bite the husband.
These incidents have intensified fears that radicalized pro-Palestinian and Arab elements are importing Middle Eastern hatred into Europe, putting Jewish communities at heightened risk.
