Italy’s Second General Strike for Gaza Brought 2 Million Workers into the Streets
The next day, one million people joined a demonstration in Rome, which highlighted Italy’s complicity in the genocide.
By Laura Montanari , Truthout, October 11, 2025, https://truthout.org/articles/italys-second-general-strike-for-gaza-brought-2m-workers-into-the-streets/?utm_source=Truthout&utm_campaign=b6b31995af-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2025_10_11_04_35&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_bbb541a1db-b6b31995af-650192793
It seemed impossible for Italy to strike for Palestine more successfully than it did the first time, yet it happened: 2 million people returned to the streets on October 3, blocking everything again. The second general strike was called by Si Cobas labor union on September 18, and circulated broadly after September 22, the date of the first strike.
After Israel attacked the Global Sumud Flotilla on the evening of October 1, CGIL (the biggest Italian union) and USB (the union that called the earlier general strike) joined the call. This landmark event marked the first time that all the leftist labor unions in the country decided to go on strike together.
The days preceding the strike were filled with constant mobilization. People took to the streets as soon as the attack on the flotilla was reported through media channels. A spontaneous rage and a will to act took over, with people rushing to the main squares in different Italian cities. After two years of genocide witnessed through phone and laptop screens, people of all ages gathered together physically in continuous and heterogeneous demonstrations. On October 2, the day after the attacks, people were in the streets again, in a diffuse vibrant and electric atmosphere that foreshadowed what would happen over the next two days.
As Marika Giati — a PhD student at the University of Pisa and part of the Women’s Assembly of the Migrants Coordination in Bologna — told Truthout, “In these demonstrations, a new consciousness could be felt — one that exploded and connected with the massive mobilizations stretching from Spain to France, Germany, the Netherlands, Greece, Tunisia, Mexico, and Morocco.”
People were enraged by the Italian government as well. Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani, speaking about Israel’s illegal control of the international waters adjacent to Gaza, said that international law is important, “but does not always matter” — justifying both the Israeli blockade, and the fact that the Italian frigate accompanying the flotilla abandoned the flotilla while it was being attacked and while Italian citizens were being illegally arrested by Israel.
Workers shut down Italy again in solidarity with Palestine
Hundreds of thousands joined a new general strike across Italy, in solidarity with the people of Gaza and the Global Sumud Flotilla.
October 03, 2025 by Peoples Dispatch, https://peoplesdispatch.org/2025/10/03/workers-shut-down-italy-again-in-solidarity-with-palestine/
Hundreds of thousands of people have again taken to the streets of Italy in response to a general strike call originally launched by the grassroots union Unione Sindacale di Base (USB) and later joined by some of the country’s largest trade union confederations. As they blocked ports, highways, and industrial zones, protesters delivered a resounding rejection of Giorgia Meloni’s government’s complicity in Israel’s genocide in Gaza, demanding an immediate end to the attacks and the release of activists kidnapped from the Global Sumud Flotilla.
“Tens of thousands of people took to the streets for the general strike in support of Palestine: this is a huge success,” Giuliano Granato of the left party Potere al Popolo reported from one of the marches. “It shows that there is a majority in the country that is fighting for Palestine and doing what our government has not dared to do for two years.”
The strike came just days after Israeli forces assaulted dozens of vessels of the Global Sumud Flotilla in international waters, detaining activists, including several Italians. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and other officials failed to act decisively for their protection or release. Instead, they implied Israel had acted with measure and tried to shift the blame on the flotilla for continuing its humanitarian mission despite threats. The government’s attempt to present itself as “sovereignist” fell apart in the face of these events. “This is not a government of sovereignists. This is a government that bows down and prostrates itself before Israel,” Granato said.
In several cities, demonstrators faced heavy police repression. In Padua, more than 10,000 protesters occupying the industrial zone were attacked with water cannons and tear gas. “The march stayed united and we are continuing the blockade,” one participant said. “We want an end to complicity. We want a free Palestine.”
Protesters in Bologna and Naples also pushed through police lines to occupy strategic points. In Naples, at least 50,000 people seized part of the port despite heavy policing. In Bologna, 150,000 blocked major roads. “This is the response of the people to Israel expanding the war, to the government repressing us, to those who want to divide us into good and bad,” Potere al Popolo’s Bologna chapter wrote. “Let’s center our priorities around those who keep this country going every day, with precarious lives, low wages, and insecure jobs. Instead of rearmament and alliances with Israel, let’s lay down arms and raise salaries!”
Union leaders echoed the calls. Maurizio Landini, head of the confederation CGIL, stated: “There are no rights, there is no dignity without peace. True security does not mean increasing spending on weapons, but investing in public health, education, employment, and the redistribution of wealth.”
The strike raised demands for a full arms embargo on Israel, the severing of all ties with the occupation authorities, and an immediate end to the genocide. And there is no end in sight for the mobilization – those who joined the strike are already preparing for Saturday’s national demonstration in Rome, where they will again assert their solidarity and determination to see a free Palestine.
Vatican City Is Now Powered By Solar
Carolyn Fortuna, May 2025
Vatican City Is Now Powered By Solar. Pope Francis had a dream that the
Vatican would run entirely on green energy. He wanted to highlight the need
“to make a transition to a sustainable development model that reduces
greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, setting the goal of climate
neutrality.”
To model what this could look like, he announced that solar
panels would be installed on a Vatican-owned property outside Rome, and the
power generated from that could supply all of Vatican City’s energy
needs. The future installation would be projected to “ensure, not only
the power supply of the radio station existing there, but also the complete
energy support of Vatican City State,” he wrote. Fast forward to 2025,
and the project is completed.
Clean Technica 29th May 2025,
https://cleantechnica.com/2025/05/29/vatican-city-is-now-powered-by-solar/
Suspected case of plutonium contamination in Rome plant
Worker at Casaccia research centre
suspected case of plutonium contamination of a worker was reported Friday at the Casaccia Research Center, on the outskirts of Rome.
The National Inspectorate for Nuclear Safety (ISIN) has announced that it is “following with the utmost attention the case of contamination recorded at the Plutonium plant of the Casaccia center” which involved a “worker on duty”.
As Ukraine Disintegrates – Hedging Bets Begins in Italy
New Eastern Outlook, 05.06.2024 Author: Phil Butler
The remarkable news that Italy’s Defence Minister is calling for the West to make a concerted effort to end the conflict in Ukraine may give some people hope. Guido Crosetto recently told the daily Il Messaggero that negotiation with Vladimir Putin is the only way to end the bloodshed. However, doublespeak statements from Italian politicians and business people mirror the EU’s and NATO’s rudderless single mindedness. Indecision is spelling the end of Ukraine as a nation.
Crosetto, a staunch supporter of Ukraine, has also criticized Western sanctions against Russia as ineffective. As one of the founders of the national-conservative Brothers of Italy (FdI), he has also pointed out the overestimation of the Western order’s economic influence by American and European leadership. He believes that arming Ukraine could expedite the conditions for a truce and ultimately peace. In other words, the solution lies in a strategic approach that leads to peace, not in a perpetual state of conflict.
Conflicts of Interest and Financial Motivations
It is worth mentioning here that Italy’s Defense Minister is also involved in the arms industry, building corvettes, frigates and aircraft carriers via Orizzonte Sistemi Navali, a joint venture between Fincantieri and Leonardo S.p.A. In true deadly sidewinder fashion, Crosetto now says he advised Ukraine’s Zelensky against the counter-offensive aimed at the Russian lines, but that Zelensky did not take his advice seriously. So, an Italian politician and tycoon who changes parties as often as he does his underwear seek to ride the fence on Ukraine no
If the Russian military continues its slow offensive moves westward, no degree of arms or monetary support will prevent the inevitable. The Ukraine side will soon have too few soldiers to use new tranches of weapons, and money laundering schemes will dry up as fast as Zelensky’s cabal exits the country. However, the recent Crosetto fence riding has more to do with making billions off of arms sales to NATO and non-Nato countries. A multi-billion euro deal between Abu Dhabi-based defense contractors EDGE Group and Shipbuilding Giant Fincantieri. At the time of the agreement, Crosetto was quoted thus:………………………………………………………………………….. more https://journal-neo.su/2024/06/05/as-ukraine-disintegrates-hedging-bets-begins-in-italy/
Italy opposes Ukraine using long-range weapons to strike Russia
https://www.rt.com/russia/598477-italy-opposes-ukraine-strike-russia-nato-weapons/ 31 May 24
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has specified where missiles his country sends to Kiev can be used
Italy will never send troops to Ukraine and any weapons it has supplied to Kiev should not be used deep inside Russian territory, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Thursday.
He made the remarks as pressure builds on NATO members to allow Kiev use long-range Western weapons to strike targets inside Russia. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg last week urged Western arms donors to allow attacks against targets behind the conflict zone on Russian soil.
“All the weapons leaving from Italy [to Ukraine] should be used within Ukraine,” Tajani said in an interview with public broadcaster RAI.
Italy, although a staunch supporter of Ukraine, has rebuked Stoltenberg over his call for more strikes on Russia with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and other top officials accusing him of escalating tensions with Moscow.
“I don’t know why Stoltenberg said such a thing, I think we have to be very careful,” Meloni told Italy’s RAI 3 TV channel on Sunday.
Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini described the NATO chief as “dangerous.”
French President Emmanuel Macron however said on Tuesday that Kiev should be allowed to hit military sites deep inside Russia.
“We think we should allow them neutralize military sites from which missiles are fired, military sites from which Ukraine is attacked,” he told a joint news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
The German leader now also supports Ukrainian strikes with Western long-range weaponry deep inside Russia, despite his earlier concerns about escalation with Moscow. Speaking alongside Macron, Scholz said that “if Ukraine is attacked, it can defend itself” under international law.
Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics told CNN on Monday that he sees “no rational pragmatic reason not to allow Ukraine to use those weapons against Russia in a way that is the most efficient.”
Ukrainian officials have claimed that the limitations imposed by the West are responsible for Russia’s recent advances in Kharkov Region. Vladimir Zelensky has repeatedly called for increased NATO involvement in the conflict and has argued that the West should not fear Russia’s reaction.
According to Moscow, claims that restrictions on the use of US munitions are in place are false and designed to maintain the illusion that the West is not part of the conflict.
Italy’s Foreign Minister reveals country ceased arms shipments to Israel starting October 7 over ‘war crime’ concerns
The Times of Israel, Mon, 22 Jan 2024, https://www.sott.net/article/488099-Italys-FM-reveals-country-ceased-arms-shipments-to-Israel-starting-October-7-over-war-crime-concerns
Italian Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani told local media Saturday that his country had halted all arms shipments to Israel since Hamas’s brutal October 7 onslaught.
The minister’s comments, made in an interview with Italian newspapers Nazione, Giorno, and Resto del Carlino, were a response to a demand by opposition leader Elly Schlein that the Italian government stop weapons exports to the Middle East. Tajani accused her of being “misinformed.”
“Since October 7, we have decided not to send any more arms to Israel, so there is no need to discuss this point,” said Tajani, according to a report from Italian news agency ANSA.
Speaking at a Friday meeting of the center-left Democratic Party, which she heads, Schlein said that “we must face the issue of avoiding fueling these conflicts, of avoiding sending arms and exporting arms to conflicts, to the conflict in the Middle East, in this case particularly to Israel,” according to ANSA.
“We cannot risk weapons being used to commit what could be construed as war crimes,” added the opposition lawmaker.
According to Israeli news site Walla, some five percent of Israeli arms purchases over the past decade have come from Italy, which include helicopters and naval artillery.
Comment: At irregular intervals over the past few years Italy’s dockworkers and border staff have protested and taken strike action against supplying Israel with arms.
In separate news, Tajani said in an interview with Italian radio Friday that his country would be willing to send troops to a peacekeeping mission in Gaza, ANSA reported.
On Sunday, following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s stated refusal to accept a two-state formula for peace, Tajani told reporters that President Isaac Herzog is nonetheless open to such a solution, according to a report in Italian daily Il Tempo.
Tajani, a former air force officer who has led the conservative Forza Italia party since the death of its chairman Silvio Berlusconi in July, made an early solidarity visit to Israel at the start of the war on Hamas, and in November reaffirmed with other G7 nations his belief in Israel’s right to defend itself, within the bounds of international law, against Hamas aggression.
Comment: Key point: within the bounds of international law; although numerous experts have pointed out that, as an occupying force, Israel isn’t ‘defending itself’, these are acts of aggression, and criminal.
By December, the Italian foreign minister struck a more critical tone, condemning Israel for shooting inside a Gaza church. In January, as president of the G7, Tajani explored with other foreign ministers in the group the possibility of applying pressure on Israel to bring the war to a “rapid” end.
On the subject of South Africa’s ongoing claim at the International Court of Justice that Israel is committing “genocide” against Gazans, Tajani has said that although Israel has hit civilians in Gaza, it is not committing genocide.
Berlusconi, the erstwhile leader of Tajani’s party, and a colorful, scandal-ridden, media mogul who served as Italy’s prime minister for a cumulative nine years, was known to be a strong supporter of Israel, even raising the possibility that the Jewish state join the European Union. It was under Berlusconi that Italy sold 30 jet trainers to Israel, in a billion-dollar deal. Though critical of Israel’s West Bank settlements, Berlusconi at one time stated that the West should support Israel in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Comment: Notably Italy, and Spain, despite pressure from the US, refused to send support to the US-UK for their naval campaign against Yemen: Iran warns it could cut off Mediterranean Sea as France, Spain and Italy pull out of Red Sea Op – Israeli vessel hit off India’s coast
Italy’s Nuclear Energy Debate: Past, Present, and Future
Note that Italy has actually held 2 referendums about nuclear power, and both resulting in a definite “NO”
It seems that the public, the ordinary people, might have more sense than their leaders?
Italy’s nuclear energy debate has been a long-standing and complex issue, with a history of fluctuating public opinion, political decisions, and technological advancements. The country’s relationship with nuclear power began in the 1960s, when Italy was one of the first European countries to invest in nuclear energy. However, the nuclear debate has evolved significantly over the past few decades, with Italy’s nuclear energy program experiencing a series of stops and starts, ultimately leading to its current state of uncertainty.
……………………………………. Italy held a national referendum in 1987, in which a majority of voters chose to phase out the country’s existing nuclear power plants. By 1990, all four of Italy’s nuclear power plants had been shut down.
………………………………….. In the early 2000s, Italy’s nuclear energy debate re-emerged as a prominent issue, as the country faced growing energy demands and concerns about climate change. In 2008, the Italian government announced plans to resume investment in nuclear power, with the goal of generating 25% of the country’s electricity from nuclear energy by 2030.
……………………………………However, the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan once again shifted public opinion on nuclear energy, reigniting concerns about the safety of nuclear power plants. In response to the disaster, Italy held another national referendum in June 2011, in which a majority of voters chose to maintain the country’s moratorium on nuclear power. As a result, the Italian government abandoned its plans to invest in new nuclear power plants.
Since the 2011 referendum, Italy’s nuclear energy debate has remained a contentious issue,…………………………………………….Opponents argue that the risks associated with nuclear power, particularly in terms of safety and waste disposal, outweigh its potential benefits.
In recent years, Italy has made significant investments in renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power, in an effort to diversify its energy mix and reduce its reliance on imported energy. However, the question of whether nuclear power should play a role in Italy’s energy future remains unresolved………………….. https://www.energyportal.eu/news/italys-nuclear-energy-debate-past-present-and-future/45044/
June 2: Nonviolent ecumenical movements call for ratification of the Nuclear Weapons Prohibition Treaty
04.06.23 – Italy – Redazione Italia https://www.pressenza.com/2023/06/june-2-nonviolent-ecumenical-movements-call-for-ratification-of-the-nuclear-weapons-prohibition-treaty/
On the occasion of June 2, Republic Day, associations and organizations from the Catholic world and spiritually based ecumenical and nonviolent movements called at a June 1 press conference for the Italian government to ratify the U.N. Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons as a first step in stemming the war in Ukraine and embarking on a diplomatic path to peace.
“We are in an apocalyptic scenario, today, more than ever, it is necessary that the Treaty be signed because the crest on which we are walking is very dangerous,” said Carlo Cefaloni of the Focolare Movement, opening the press conference at the Chamber of Deputies on behalf of all the movements.
“Tomorrow there will be a military parade, instead we are here to say that we don’t want war; but we really have to decide that,” said Don Renato Sacco of Pax Christi, “because in this last year 2240 billion euros have been invested in armaments; this means that you want war: [therefore] there is a need to choose peace in a strong and determined way.
Also speaking during the press conference was Enkolina Shqau of the Pope John XXIII Association; she stressed that “to say no to war and nuclear weapons is not a matter of being good but of being smart because it is not possible that we still have not learned anything from the disasters of the last century.”
Emanuela Gitto, Vice President of the Youth Sector of Catholic Action stressed that “On the occasion of the June 2 holiday, we want to remember how the Constituent Assembly decided to put the repudiation of war among the founding pillars of our Republic, which is why it is important that the call to silence the weapons and open a true dialogue towards peace starts from these rooms.
“Politics has been lacking in these months, especially a prophetic vision of politics,” said Emiliano Manfredonia, national president of the ACLI, “and so the usual traffickers, including drug and human traffickers have won. Let us commit instead to sign this treaty as a prophetic gesture, as a strong signal to start a real path of peace and to accompany Monsignor Zuppi in this mission of his in Ukraine so that he can really open the necessary paths.”
Maurizio Simoncelli, spokesman for the Italia ripensaci campaign explained that “the Treaty so far has been signed by nations that do not have nuclear production (Translator’s note: They probably mean “nuclear weapons”. Italy hosts nuclear weapons), and it would be nice if instead, Italy was the first to set a good example in this regard because we know that having nuclear weapons does not increase a country’s security, but rather the opposite.”
A number of parliamentarians were also present in the press room of the Chamber of Deputies, including Hon. Paolo Ciani, who wanted to reiterate how important the commitment of politics is “and it is not a credit to European politics that the go-ahead from Strasbourg in these hours will allow the use of PNRR (National Plan for Recovery and Resilience) funds for the production of munitions to be sent to Ukraine.” MP Nicola Fratoianni also commented on the news of the Europarliament vote, saying that “these are acts that have nothing to do with real politics and I am very happy with demonstrations like the
one you organized today because they are necessary to make the decision-makers change direction.”
Mario Marazzitti of the Sant’Egidio Community wanted to add that “the signing of this document certainly does not serve to resolve the conflict in Ukraine, but it is a first step to lower the fever of war and this mad arms race.”
“Good politics is the one that gets us out of the logic of the market,” said Maurizio Certini of the Giorgio La Pira Foundation, “therefore out of the business related to the production of weapons because we need to make everyone understand that bombs bring insecurity.
At the end of the press conference, representatives of the associations gathered in front of the Montecitorio to display a banner that read For a Republic Free of War and Nuclear Weapons.
DEPLETED URANIUM: COURTS ACCEPT CANCER RISK DENIED BY ARMY
400 Italian soldiers who were exposed to DU in the Balkans had since died from cancer, and another 8,000 were suffering from the disease. They interviewed the lawyer at the centre of the litigation, Angelo Tartaglia, who urged Britain to “think about the risks and the consequences” of supplying Ukraine with DU shells.
Tartaglia said: “There’s the possibility that both Ukrainian and Russian military officials might fall ill but most importantly pollution caused by military activities could cause irreversible damage to the environment which means that civilians too would be at risk”.
An Italian Parliamentary commission into the issue found “shocking” levels of exposure among Italian veterans and said it had “helped sow deaths and illnesses”.
Courts across Europe have ruled that depleted uranium can cause cancer among troops. Yet the British army insists it is safe to supply Ukraine with the toxic tank shells.
PHIL MILLER, 2 MAY 2023
More than 300 Italian veterans who developed cancer after being exposed to depleted uranium ammunition have won court cases against Italy’s military. Some of the cases were brought by their bereaved relatives.
The judgments have mounted in recent years, with Italian courts repeatedly finding a link between cancer and service in the Balkans where such weapons were fired.
Although Italy does not have depleted uranium weapons in its own arsenal, Italian police and soldiers were deployed to Bosnia and Kosovo where NATO allies fired the controversial ammunition in the 1990s.
Depleted uranium (DU) is a chemically toxic and radioactive heavy metal produced as waste from nuclear power plants. Britain uses it to make armour-piercing tank shells, which are now being supplied to Ukraine.
Scientific debate continues about DU’s long-term risks to human health and the environment in post-conflict zones. British ministers insist it is low risk, and that there is only “some potential heavy metal contamination localised around the impact zone.”
But in the Balkans and Iraq, many believe it has caused cancer. That view was shared in 2009 by a coroner in England, who held an inquest into the death of Stuart Dyson, a British army veteran.
Dyson cleaned tanks during the Gulf war in 1991 and later developed a rare cancer, passing away in 2008. An inquest jury found it was “more likely than not” that depleted uranium had caused his death.
The Ministry of Defence rejected the ruling and refused to pay his widow a pension for those who die from service. By contrast, the widow of Captain Henri Friconneau, a French gendarme who served in Kosovo, was granted a service pension when he later died from cancer.
An appeal court in Rennes ruled in 2019 that Friconneau’s death was due to his exposure to DU dust. France’s interior ministry accepted the judgment and added his name to a monument for those who died on operations in Kosovo.
When in Rome
But it is in Italy where the highest number of veterans have won compensation. One family received a 1.3m euros pay out in 2015 after the court of appeal in Rome found “with unequivocal certainty” a link between exposure to depleted uranium dust and cancer.
The Il Fatto newspaper said the judgement went further than previous rulings, as it recognised a causal link beyond just the balance of probabilities.
A more recent ruling in 2018 seen by Declassified found the court could not “rule out the possibility that a soldier who served” in the Balkans “would have been exposed to genotoxic pollutants, thus increasing the likelihood of illness.”
An Italian Parliamentary commission into the issue found “shocking” levels of exposure among Italian veterans and said it had “helped sow deaths and illnesses”.
Last month, Euronews reported that 400 Italian soldiers who were exposed to DU in the Balkans had since died from cancer, and another 8,000 were suffering from the disease. They interviewed the lawyer at the centre of the litigation, Angelo Tartaglia, who urged Britain to “think about the risks and the consequences” of supplying Ukraine with DU shells.
Tartaglia said: “There’s the possibility that both Ukrainian and Russian military officials might fall ill but most importantly pollution caused by military activities could cause irreversible damage to the environment which means that civilians too would be at risk”………………………………………………………………. more https://declassifieduk.org/depleted-uranium-courts-accept-cancer-risk-denied-by-army/
Alarm in Malta over the proposal for a nuclear reactor in Sicily.
A nuclear reactor in Sicily? Malta Independent, 15 Jan 23,
During the recent 2022 electoral campaign, the issue of nuclear energy in neighbouring Italy has resurfaced in the political debate.
Matteo Salvini, currently Minister for the Infrastructure and Transport, in addition to being Deputy Prime Minister of the ruling Italian coalition government, is on record as emphasising that, given the current energy crisis, he considers that it would be expedient to resurrect the nuclear proposal.
talian voters have expressed themselves clearly on the matter twice. The last time was in a referendum in June 2011 in the aftermath of the Fukushima March 2011 nuclear disaster. Then, 94 per cent of those voting, opted in favour of a total ban on the construction of nuclear reactors on Italian soil.
The current energy crisis is pressuring all to find alternative energy supplies at affordable cost. Nuclear energy, however, comes with two hidden costs which are rarely ever factored into the costings presented for public debate: the disposal of nuclear waste and the inherent risks linked to the failure of the nuclear plants. The impacts of the nuclear accidents at Three Mile Island (Pennsylvania USA – 28 March 1979), Chernobyl (Ukraine – 26 April 1986) and Fukushima (Japan – 11 March 2011) are clear enough testimony of what is at stake, when considering the option of nuclear energy.
The disposal of nuclear waste is the subject of an ongoing debate all over the world. It is costly both environmentally as well as financially. In the recent past, closer to home, the eco-mafia dumped various types of waste including nuclear waste in the Mediterranean Sea in 42 different ships sunk in different parts of the Mediterranean. The specific case of the sunken ship Kunsky off the Calabrian coast was revealed by ‘Ndrangheta/Camorra turncoats Francesco Fonti and Carmine Schiavone many years ago in their testimony to the Italian authorities………………
The site which in 2011 was indicated by the Italian authorities as the most probable candidate to host a nuclear reactor in Sicily was along the southern coastline in the vicinity of Palma de Montechiaro. That would be less than 100 kilometres to the North West of Gozo.
As we are aware Sicily is an earthquake prone zone. In addition to the multitude of small earthquakes we hear about and occasionally are aware of throughout the year, the Sicilian mainland was exposed to the two most intensive earthquakes ever to hit the European mainland. The 1693 earthquake centred in South East Sicily had a magnitude of 7.4 while the Messina 1908 earthquake had a magnitude of 7.1 on the Mercalli scale. Both created havoc and had a high cost in human life! In addition, the physical infrastructure was in shambles.
A decision on whether the Italian government will once more attempt to consider the generation of nuclear energy on Italian soil is not due anytime soon. However, once the collection of signatures for a referendum on the matter gathers steam it will only be a question of time when we will have to consider facing the music one more time.
Our interest in Malta is in the transboundary impacts generated from a nuclear reactor sited along the southern Sicilian coast close to Palma di Montechiaro, should the proposed nuclear reactor malfunction.
It would be pertinent to keep in mind that the radioactivity emitted as a result of the Fukushima disaster led to a complete evacuation within a 200 km radius of the nuclear plant. Gozo being less than 100 km away from the Sicilian mainland should trigger the alarm bells of one and all as to what is ultimately at stake. https://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2023-01-15/blogs-opinions/A-nuclear-reactor-in-Sicily-6736248841
Thousands rally in Rome against arming Ukraine
Trade unionists and leftists marched after the new government promised more arms for Kiev next year
https://www.rt.com/news/567650-italy-ukraine-weapons-protest/ 5 Dec 22,
Left-wing demonstrators took to the streets in Rome on Saturday, demanding higher wages and condemning the Italian government for renewing a decree allowing it to send weapons to Ukraine until 2024.
Organized by Italy’s USB trade union and backed by a number of leftist political factions, the protest saw thousands of people assemble at the Piazza della Repubblica and march behind a banner reading “guns down, wages up.”
“The Meloni government is dragging us further and further into a spiral of war with unpredictable outcomes,” the USB wrote prior to the protest. “Italy is evidently a belligerent and active country in the conflict, despite the fact that the great majority of the population is against the war and the consequent sharp increase in military spending.”
Italy’s new prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, issued a decree on Thursday allowing her cabinet to continue sending weapons to Ukraine until the end of 2023 without seeking the formal approval of parliament. Her predecessor, Mario Draghi, was a staunch supporter of Kiev and lost power after a disagreement over arms shipments split the largest party in his coalition government, the Five Star Movement.
The Italian public is split too, with 49% opposing sending weapons to Kiev and 38% in favor, according to a poll taken by EuroWeek News last month. Additionally, 49% of Italians believe that Ukraine needs to make concessions to Russia in the ongoing conflict to speed up the peace process, while only 36% want Kiev to keep fighting.
Last month, another rally in Rome calling for a peace deal to end the Ukrainian conflict drew 100,000 people, organizers said.
Blowback: Italian police bust Azov-tied Nazi cell planning terror attacks
Nazism has found a safe space in the Ukrainian armed forces
a 2022 Department of Homeland Security document acknowledged that “Ukrainian nationalist groups including the Azov Movement are actively recruiting racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist white supremacists to join various neo-Nazi volunteer battalions in the war against Russia”
ALEXANDER RUBINSTEIN·NOVEMBER 15, 2022,
The arrest of Italian neo-Nazis affiliated with the Ukrainian Azov Battalion highlights the terrifying potential for blowback from the Ukraine proxy war
Italian police announced a series of raids against the neo-Nazi Order of Hagal organization. Accused of stockpiling weapons and planning terror attacks, the group has established operational ties to the Ukrainian Azov Battalion.
Five members of an Italian neo-Nazi organization known as the “Order of Hagal” were arrested on November 15th while an additional member remains wanted by authorities. He happened to be in Ukraine, fighting Russian forces alongside the Azov Battalion, which has been formally integrated into the Ukrainian military.
The “Hagal” members are accused of plotting terrorist attacks on civilian and police targets. A sixth member of the Hagal group, now considered a fugitive, is in Ukraine and embedded with the Azov Battalion, a neo-Nazi paramilitary group that has been incorporated into the Ukrainian National Guard.
Members of the Order of Hagal reportedly maintained “direct and frequent” contacts over Telegram with not just the Azov Battalion, but also the neo-Nazi Ukrainian military formations Right Sector and Centuria, “probably in the view of possible recruitment into the ranks of these fighting groups,” according to Italian media.
The police investigation was launched in 2019 and has included extensive computer searches and wiretapping; tactics which have revealed members of the group’s intent on carrying out violent acts in Italy. ……………………………
Footage of the arrests broadcast by the news channel Sky Tg24 shows long knives, a Nordic-style axe, a bat emblazoned with the words “Leader Mussolini,” a swastika flag, a gas mask, an Azov Battalion t-shirt and “Valhalla Express,” a memoir by an Azov fighter.
But Ukraine is not the only country to have been visited by members of the Order of Hagal; “some members” also traveled to Israel to train in Krav Maga and the use of long and short weapons,” according to police officials. In fact, they were even given diplomas for completing the training…………………………….
While Nazism has found a safe space in the Ukrainian armed forces, the arrests and warrants against the members of the Order of Hagal that planned terror attacks suggests the potential for blowback from NATO’s Ukraine proxy war, as battle-hardened, ideologically extreme veterans encouraged by Western governments and supported with US and EU aid return home to cities across Europe.
“The high availability of weapons during the current conflict will result in the proliferation in illicit arms in the post-conflict phase,” Interpol Secretary General Juergen Stock has warned.
As The Grayzone has reported, a 2022 Department of Homeland Security document acknowledged that “Ukrainian nationalist groups including the Azov Movement are actively recruiting racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist white supremacists to join various neo-Nazi volunteer battalions in the war against Russia” but noted a key intelligence gap: “What kind of training are foreign fighters receiving in Ukraine that they could possibly proliferate in US based militia and white nationalist groups?” https://thegrayzone.com/2022/11/15/blowback-italian-azov-tied-nazi-terror/
Italy’s far-right leader Giorgia Meloni favours return to nuclear power and increased gas production.
The front-runner to become Italy’s next prime minister in elections on
Sunday plans to focus on natural gas and nuclear energy, along with other
temporary market interventions to mitigate the country’s energy crisis.
The most recent opinion polls favour Giorgia Meloni, leader of the far-right
Fratelli d’Italia party, to win over her main rival Enrico Letta, leader of
the centre-left Democratic party. Much of the political campaign to replace
outgoing premier Mario Draghi has focused on the current tight energy
supplies, exacerbated by the Russian war in Ukraine, and skyrocketing
bills, which continue to pile pressure on Italian businesses and
households.
Gas, nuclear and EU green policies have emerged as contention
points. Meloni, who has teamed up with centre-right allies Matteo Salvini
and former premier Silvio Berlusconi, supports the reactivation of the
country’s long-shuttered nuclear power plants and an increase in domestic
gas production.
Montel 22nd Sept 2022
https://www.montelnews.com/news/1352753/front-runner-in-italian-election-focuses-on-gas-nuclear
Italian Airport Workers Stop Arms Shipment to Ukraine Under Guise of “Humanitarian Aid”
In Italy, workers discovered that weapons were being shipped to Ukraine under the pretense of sending “humanitarian aid” and have refused to hand them over. Their example should serve as a model for all workers on how to take action against the war.
Defend Democracy Press By Simon Zinnstein, March 17, 2022 The war in Ukraine is causing more and more saber-rattling in the U.S. and Europe. As many countries massively ramp up their own military budgets, many more still are sending weapons to Ukraine. According to the Unione Sindacale di Base (USB), workers at Galileo Galilei Airport in Pisa, Italy discovered boxes full of “weapons of all kinds, ammunition and explosives.” They had previously been informed that the delivery contained humanitarian goods such as food and medicine. The airport workers then refused to send the weapons to Ukraine via Poland.
……………………………….. The incident is also an example of how “humanitarianism” can be abused. The USB statement says: “We strongly condemn this blatant deception, which cynically uses the guise of ‘humanitarian aid’ to further fuel the war in Ukraine.” Humanitarian measures, such as sending aid supplies and accepting refugees are not enough to end the war — and in this case they even served as a cover for militarism. http://www.defenddemocracy.press/italian-airport-workers-stop-arms-shipment-to-ukraine-under-guise-of-humanitarian-aid/
1 This Month.
5 January -Webinar-What is Trump’s Golden Dome?
REGISTER AT Massachusetts Peace Action Education
New book – https://www.amazon.com/dp/1923372157?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
Now until to February 10, 2026 Radioactive waste storage in France: the debate is finally open! How to participate?
-
Archives
- December 2025 (286)
- November 2025 (359)
- October 2025 (377)
- September 2025 (258)
- August 2025 (319)
- July 2025 (230)
- June 2025 (348)
- May 2025 (261)
- April 2025 (305)
- March 2025 (319)
- February 2025 (234)
- January 2025 (250)
-
Categories
- 1
- 1 NUCLEAR ISSUES
- business and costs
- climate change
- culture and arts
- ENERGY
- environment
- health
- history
- indigenous issues
- Legal
- marketing of nuclear
- media
- opposition to nuclear
- PERSONAL STORIES
- politics
- politics international
- Religion and ethics
- safety
- secrets,lies and civil liberties
- spinbuster
- technology
- Uranium
- wastes
- weapons and war
- Women
- 2 WORLD
- ACTION
- AFRICA
- Atrocities
- AUSTRALIA
- Christina's notes
- Christina's themes
- culture and arts
- Events
- Fuk 2022
- Fuk 2023
- Fukushima 2017
- Fukushima 2018
- fukushima 2019
- Fukushima 2020
- Fukushima 2021
- general
- global warming
- Humour (God we need it)
- Nuclear
- RARE EARTHS
- Reference
- resources – print
- Resources -audiovicual
- Weekly Newsletter
- World
- World Nuclear
- YouTube
-
RSS
Entries RSS
Comments RSS
nuclear-news 