On Monday, September 22, 2025, Italy witnessed massive demonstrations as thousands of striking workers and activists rallied in a powerful show of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. Protests brought significant disruption, with some participants even entering Milan’s central train station.
This widespread action was initiated by Italy’s grassroots unions, representing a diverse workforce including schoolteachers and metalworkers. They organized a 24-hour general strike impacting both public and private sectors, causing significant halts in public transportation, rail services, schools, and port operations.
Protesters in Milan enter the Central Station during clashes with police after a solidarity march for Palestine.
The national strike led to considerable delays for trains and severely limited public transportation services in major Italian cities, including the capital, Rome.
Masked protesters clash with law enforcement outside Milano Centrale railway station during a nationwide “Let’s Block Everything” demonstration. Activists also demanded a halt to arms shipments to Israel.
Tensions flared in Milan as several protesters, clad in black and carrying batons, attempted to breach the central train station’s main entrance. They launched smoke bombs, bottles, and stones at police, who retaliated with pepper spray. Meanwhile, in Bologna, authorities deployed water cannons to disperse demonstrators who had effectively blocked a major highway.
Goods transit faced delays or partial blockades due to workers’ sit-ins and rallies at key Italian ports like Genoa and Livorno. In Rome, over 20,000 people convened outside the central station to protest the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Both unions and student organizations strongly criticized the perceived “inertia” of the Italian and European Union governments regarding the crisis.
Striking dockworkers blocked access roads to the port of Genoa in northern Italy, protesting arms shipments during Israel’s offensive in Gaza
— Reuters (@Reuters) September 22, 2025
Walter Montagnoli, national secretary of the CUB union, participating in a Milan march, stated, “If we fail to halt Israel’s actions, if we don’t block trade, weapons distribution, and all other dealings with Israel, our efforts will be in vain.”
However, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, in a statement on X, countered that “It’s not through violence, by attacking security forces, blocking highways, stations and ports that we help the Palestinian civil population.”
Protesters are seen preparing to throw objects during confrontations with police outside Milano Centrale railway station, as part of a nationwide “Let’s Block Everything” protest advocating for Gaza and demanding a stop to arms shipments to Israel.
While conservative Premier Giorgia Meloni’s Italian government, historically a strong Israeli ally within the EU, has recently taken a firmer stance on Israeli policies amid escalating domestic pressure over the conflict, Italy will not be among the nations, such as France, to formally recognize a Palestinian state at the upcoming U.N. General Assembly.
The establishment of a Palestinian state encompassing East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza has long been globally viewed as the sole pathway to resolving a conflict that predates the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack. This assault ignited the current war in Gaza, claiming the lives of approximately 1,200 people, predominantly civilians, and resulting in the abduction of 251 individuals. Currently, 48 hostages are believed to remain in Gaza, with Israel estimating 20 of them are still alive.
In response, Israel’s offensive over the last 23 months has led to the deaths of over 65,100 people in Gaza, according to figures from Gaza’s Health Ministry. The campaign has devastated extensive parts of the strip, displaced roughly 90% of its inhabitants, and triggered a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, with experts now reporting famine conditions in Gaza City.
While the Ministry operates under the Hamas-run government, its casualty figures are generally regarded by UN agencies and numerous independent experts as the most credible estimates of wartime deaths. However, these figures do not distinguish between civilian and combatant fatalities.