Protests organized under the banner "Italia in Piazza" across several Italian cities turned violent on Saturday (October 17, 2026), driven by growing public anger over the rising cost of living, high energy and electricity prices, low wages, and the quality of public services. Clashes between groups of demonstrators and police, vandalism of storefronts, stone-pelting, fireworks, and extensive police crackdowns were reported in Milan, Bologna, and Turin.

The most intense unrest unfolded in Milan's historic city center around Piazza del Duomo and surrounding areas. Demonstrators marching from Piazza del Duomo clashed with riot police in the Via Broletto area, hurling stones, bottles, barricade fragments, and pyrotechnics. Police deployed anti-riot gear and tear gas to control the crowds. Unrest later spread toward Piazza del Duomo, Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, and San Babila, where some protesters smashed shop windows, looted a shoe store, lit fires, and erected makeshift barricades using street furniture. The Duomo metro station was temporarily closed, and businesses shuttered their doors as tourists and residents fled the area. According to ANSA reports, nearly 50 individuals were taken into police custody in Milan—about half of whom were minors—while at least two police officers sustained injuries.

Simultaneously, tension flared in Bologna near the central railway station in Piazza Medaglie d'Oro, where masked youths threw stones, glass bottles, and smoke-generating objects at police. Authorities deployed water cannons and tear gas, halting transit in the area. ANSA reported that four minors were arrested in Bologna for serious resistance against officers, and 36 law enforcement personnel were injured or affected during the clashes. In Turin, a protest march in Piazza Castello saw scuffles with police, during which a group of youths entered the Feltrinelli bookstore in the Porta Nuova area and threw books and merchandise onto the floor.