Demonstrators gathered in Italy held a march to protest the prison conditions of anarchist prisoner Alfredo Cospito, who was on hunger strike.
Protest marches were held across the country in solidarity with 55-year-old Cospito, who has been on a hunger strike for more than 100 days because he was held under strict isolation conditions in prison, and to protest the strict isolation conditions, known as “41bis” in the public.
The march, which started from Vittorio Emanuele 2, one of the busiest squares of the capital city of Rome, continued until Prenestina Street under extensive security measures.
During the march, which was attended by approximately 800 people, the demonstrators frequently lit torches and detonated sound bombs.
Security forces intervened against the demonstrators who wanted to set up barricades on the street. In the small-scale brawl that broke out, 2 people were injured and 3 people were detained.
It was stated that a performance was held in this city for Cospito, who was held in the Opera Prison in Milan.
It was reported that more than 200 demonstrators gathered near the prison where Cospito was held and tried to approach the fears of the prison, throwing stones and explosives at the security forces, members of the press and the prison.
In support of Alfredo Cospito, demonstrations were held in the cities of Bari and Cagliari, as well as in Rome and Milan.
CALL FROM THE PRIME MINISTER
While Cospito’s situation led to debates between the government and the opposition, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, in a letter to the Corriere della Sera newspaper, warned that the situation had escalated due to anarchists and that this could lead to different results. Meloni reminded that his party called on the parliamentarians and everyone to lower the tone due to the Cospito issue.
The anarchist ringleader Cospito, who has been in prison for 10 years due to his conviction on charges of attempting to protect the security of the state in different incidents he was involved in, has been kept in strict isolation since May 2022, within the framework of the law known as “41bis” in public, on the grounds that he incited violence in the messages he sent outside the prison.
Alfredo Cospito was transferred from Sassari prison to Milan’s Opera prison on January 30, upon the request of his lawyers and the approval of the prosecutor’s office, after he lost 40 kilograms due to a hunger strike he had been on for more than 100 days to protest his strict isolation.
HE BURNED THE DIPLOMATS’ VEHICLES
The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on January 28 that the entrance to the Italian Consulate General in Barcelona, Spain was destroyed and the car of the Italian diplomat working in the embassy in Berlin, the capital of Germany, was set on fire.
An incident similar to the one in Berlin had also occurred on 3 December 2022, when the car of the chief clerk of the Italian Embassy in Athens, the capital of Greece, was set on fire.
It was stated that the acts of violence in question were carried out by anarchist groups in order to protest the situation of the hunger striker Cospito.