Thousands of workers staged protests across Italy on Monday September 22, in solidarity with the Palestinian people and against Israel’s offensive in Gaza. Striking dockworkers blocked road access to ports, while protesters clashed with police in Milan, Naples and Bologna as unions staged nationwide protests.
People participate in a demonstration part of a nation-wide protest and general strike against the war in Gaza, in Rome, Monday, Sept. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
In Genoa, in northwest Italy, hundreds of dockworkers and activists gathered at dawn, waving Palestinian flags and blocking port entrances. Similar protests took place in Livorno and Trieste, with workers vowing to stop Italy from being used as a staging post for arms and supplies bound for Israel. The striking workers are demanding that the Italian government suspends all “commercial and military cooperation agreements with Israel” as well as the protection of the Global Sumud Flotilla that is currently attempting to sail to Gaza with 60 boats carrying humanitarian aid.
“The Palestinian people continue to give us yet another lesson in dignity and resistance,” said Ricky, a member of the grassroots Autonomous Port Workers’ Collective in Genoa while talking to Reuters. “We learn from them and try to do our part.”
People hold banners as they participate at a demonstration part of a nation-wide protest and general strike against the war in Gaza, in Rome, Monday, Sept. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
The protests were mired by skirmishes in Italy’s major cities. Police in riot gear clashed with demonstrators near Milan’s central station, using tear gas to disperse crowds. Italian media reported protesters attempted to block traffic on the motorway near Bologna, while in Naples activists forced their way into the main railway station, briefly occupying tracks and delaying services.
The right-wing government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has continued to back Israel despite growing unease within the coalition government. Transport Minister Matteo Salvini downplayed the disruption, calling it the work of “far-left trade unionists” and insisting the strikes had caused only “limited” cancellations. Despite government dismissals, the scale of Monday’s mobilisation — stretching from Genoa’s docks to Milan’s streets — underscores growing unrest in Italy over the devastating humanitarian disaster unfolding in Gaza.
The dockworkers of Genoa have vowed to support the Global Sumud Flotilla, that is attempting to break the blockade of Gaza, by preventing Israeli containers from leaving the Italian port. According to Politico “last week, stevedores in the city of Ravenna refused entry to trucks said to be carrying arms destined for Israel”.
