Naples, tension in the square: protesters pushed back towards the Med5 summit area

Naples – Tension today in Piazza Trieste e Trento, in the heart of Naples, where a procession of demonstrators – mostly students and members of collectives such as Laboratorio Insurgencia, Rete a Pieno Regime and UDS Napoli – attempted to break through the security device set up in preparation for the Med5 summit, scheduled for tomorrow.

The demonstrators tried to force the cordons to access the "red" zone, where the interior ministers of Italy, Spain, Greece, Cyprus and Malta will meet to discuss migration and security. The police, deployed in riot gear, however, pushed back the advance, avoiding physical clashes but leaving a tense atmosphere on the ground.

While the police held the line, the protesters made their voices heard with slogans and protest chants. "This is not just a march," explains an activist from Laboratorio Insurgencia, "but a clear signal: the governments that meet here do not decide for us."

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Protest against immigration policies

The Med5 summit will address hot topics tomorrow, from the management of flows in the Mediterranean to collaborations with third countries to combat irregular immigration. But for the Neapolitan collectives, it is a summit that "legitimizes security policies and rejections".

"We are in the square to denounce the hypocrisy of those who speak of welcoming while signing agreements with authoritarian regimes," accuses a student from UDS Napoli. The protest, contained for now, could flare up again tomorrow, when the ministers will be gathered a few meters from the square.

Tightening security ahead of summit

Meanwhile, the police have intensified controls throughout the area, with anti-intrusion devices and additional patrols. "The situation is under control," police sources assure, "but we are ready for any scenario."

For today the square has returned to calm, but tomorrow, with the start of the works, Naples could return to be the scene of new protests. And the game between dissent and security is only just beginning.