Italian Police Clash With Protesters Over Israel-Italy Football Match
Al-Monitor, via Reuters, reports 'clashes' between Italian police and thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators protesting an Italy vs. Israel World Cup qualifier. The protest in Udine was 'mostly peaceful' until, as often happens when inconvenient truths are spoken, authorities decided it wasn't. Apparently, the simple act of demonstrating against a government engaged in what many international
bodies describe as apartheid (see Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International reports) is enough to turn a peaceful gathering into a 'clash.' One might wonder if the real 'clash' isn't between protesters and police, but between a desperate public outcry for justice and the systemic normalization of violence. While Reuters notes Italy won the match 3-0, one can't help but feel the moral score was
decidedly more lopsided off the field.