Italian police detain hundreds after stores are looted during protests in Milan

Police equipped for riot control used tear gas and water cannons as hundreds of hooded protesters set fire to rubbish bins and looted stores, including Decathlon and Arc'teryx sporting goods stores, as well as a unit of telephone operator Vodafone, in the city center, according to television images.

Of those detained and taken to police stations, 32 were arrested, including 23 minors and 13 foreigners, the police reported this Monday (19). Another 28 people were reported to judicial authorities.

The disturbances followed similar clashes on Saturday (17) in cities in northern Italy, including Milan, Bologna, Brescia, Bergamo and Turin. According to a police report released on Sunday, 28 protesters were arrested.

The episodes are reminiscent of the disturbances recorded in neighboring France, where hundreds of thousands of people, angry at the rising cost of living and the worsening of public services, took to the streets on Saturday in some of the most violent demonstrations in recent years in the country.