Protests Spread Across Europe as Police Clash With Demonstrators in Italy, Albania and Belgium
Demonstrations over living costs, housing and government policy turned violent in several European cities on Saturday, and police in Lisbon cleared a housing protest camp early Sunday, as unrest that began in France spread across the continent.
Protests over living costs, housing and government policy spread across Europe on Saturday, with police clashing with demonstrators in Italy, Albania and Belgium and officers in Portugal clearing a protest camp in Lisbon in the early hours of Sunday.
The unrest followed a large protest in France on Saturday, where the government deployed 70,000 police officers across the country, according to Reuters. In Italy, protests against war and rising living costs took place in major cities, with clashes in Turin, Rome and Bologna and largely peaceful marches in Milan, Reuters reported.
Clashes in Italy, Albania and Belgium
In Italy, police detained a person in Milan who they said was linked to organizing the “October 17 Movement,” the name given to last weekend’s protests. Reuters witnesses did not observe any shops being looted or property vandalized during Saturday’s demonstrations in Italy, a week after clashes in which protesters fought with police, looted shops and damaged property.
In Tirana, Albania, riot police used tear gas, water cannons and rubber bullets to disperse protesters who threw rocks at officers and started a fire at the door of the agriculture ministry, Reuters reported. The student-led demonstrations, driven by anger over perceived government corruption, a lack of jobs and poor education standards, have spread from central Tirana to other cities this month. Demonstrators are demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama, who has governed since 2013 and won a fourth term last year. One protester, 28-year-old Daniel Tahiri, told Reuters: “Albanians have woken up.”
In Brussels, police used water cannons and tear gas to break up student-made barricades, according to the New York Post, and shops boarded up their windows in fear of a repeat of last week’s looting. The New York Post reported at least five arrests in Brussels. In Madrid, more than 25,000 people marched to demand pension reform, the New York Post reported, while videos shared on X showed masked demonstrators smashing a glass kiosk and starting fires in Barcelona.
Lisbon camp cleared before dawn
In Lisbon, police cleared a housing protest camp from Rossio Square shortly after 2 a.m. on Sunday, charging demonstrators and making several arrests, Reuters reported. Dozens of officers, some with police dogs, moved in after warning protesters to remove their tents or face their dismantling. Protesters had pitched more than 100 tents after a march by thousands along one of the capital’s main avenues on Saturday, and hundreds gathered to protect the camp after police dismantled a similar camp there on Tuesday. Minor injuries were reported, though figures were not immediately available.
Left Bloc lawmaker Fabian Figueiredo, who was at the camp, called the police action “completely disproportionate,” saying there had been no public disorder. Portugal is grappling with one of Europe’s most acute home affordability crises, Reuters reported: prices have more than doubled since 2017, while rents for new leases have nearly doubled, and the Bank of Portugal estimates a shortfall of 300,000 homes nationwide. Protesters are demanding that the government scrap a bill to make evictions easier and end rent caps on new leases, which passed a first parliamentary reading, although the far-right Chega party abstained.
Reuters noted that the Lisbon protest followed similar demonstrations in Belgium, France, Italy and Spain.
Reporting based on coverage by Reuters and the New York Post.
