Italy has introduced a “law and order” package in response to violent incidents linked to far-left groups in Italy and across Europe.
The right-wing government led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni framed the move as a preventive measure against extremist violence reminiscent of the 1970s and 1980s.
Interior minister Matteo Piantedosi defended the decision as necessary to prevent the return of the Red Brigade, the far-left terrorist organisation responsible for numerous murders and kidnappings during that period.
The issue has gained urgency after right-wing newspapers alleged links between Italian far-left activists and the suspected killers of Quentin Deranque, a French right-wing activist from Lyon who was attacked earlier in February and later died from his injuries.
French prosecutors are treating the case as politically motivated, with several suspects tied to militant anti-fascist networks under investigation.
Italy has experienced growing unrest in recent months. In November 2025, far-left protesters attacked and vandalised La Stampa offices in Turin during a pro-Palestinian demonstration.
Authorities subsequently evicted the Askatasuna social centre, considered a base for the protest organisers. In January 2026, far-left activists from across Italy and Europe clashed with police in Turin, severely disrupting the city.
The debate has also focused on past incidents. In 2023, far-left activists from Europe, including Italians, protested in Budapest against the annual far-right “Day of Honour”.
Italian activist Ilaria Salis was then arrested for carrying a baton and being with activists involved in the protests. She was released after being elected as a Greens and Left Alliance (AVS) MEP, an Italian hard-left party, granting her parliamentary immunity and suspending the Hungarian proceedings.
Another Italian participant, Gabriele Marchesi, received a seven-year prison sentence on December 18, 2025.
The Meloni government’s decree grants police broader powers to manage violent demonstrations, including detaining individuals for up to 12 hours before protests, stricter rules on knives and weapons, legal protections for officers acting in the line of duty and faster procedures for evicting illegally occupied buildings.
The package has passed government approval and now goes to parliament, where it may become law.
Critics warn the measures could disproportionately limit democratic freedoms and the right to protest. Supporters argue that enhanced police powers are necessary to prevent urban unrest and protect public safety.
The debate reflects a wider tension in Italy and Europe over political violence, protest rights and the transnational networks of extremist groups, amplified by the international connections revealed by the investigation into Deranque’s death.
Witnesses and right-wing sources identified Jacques Élie Favrot, a parliamentary assistant to far-left La France Insoumise (LFI) deputy Raphaël Arnault and member of the banned Young Antifascist Guard, as present during the assault.
The Young Antifascist Guard, founded in 2018 by Arnault and outlawed in 2025 by interior minister Bruno Retailleau, was accused of inciting violence against individuals, often with serious consequences.
Days before Deranque’s killing, an “International Appeal for Strengthened Antifascist and Anti-Imperialist Action” was launched by radical left-wing activists across Europe, including four Italians such as Ilaria Salis and French signatories including Cem Yoldas, spokesperson for the banned group.
The Italian daily Il Giornale has suggested these cross-border networks raise questions about potential transnational links between left-wing activists and those implicated in the Lyon attack.
Investigative sources warn that Italy could become a hub for violent European far-left activism, which in their view justifies the government’s new security package.
In Italy, the political debate is intense. The government frames the measures as essential to prevent far-left violence and protect public safety, while opposition parties argue they risk curtailing democratic freedoms and criminalising dissent.
The controversy highlights the delicate balance between security and rights, and the added dimension of international far-left networks, including the alleged links to the Lyon attack, has amplified the urgency and political stakes in Rome.
