Date: January 31, 2026
Location: Turin (Torino), Italy
Incident Type: Mass protest escalation → urban skirmishes / low-intensity guerrilla actions
Actors: Anarchist / autonomist militants (black bloc elements prominent), supporting crowds (15k–50k total), Italian state security forces (Polizia, Carabinieri)
Casualties: 100+ officers injured (reports vary 31–108), including blunt force trauma / hammer strikes; protester arrests (3+ detained, more identified via video); minor civilian impacts reported
Trigger: National march protesting eviction of historic squatted social center Askatasuna
Background – The Askatasuna Front (Historical Context)
Askatasuna (Basque for “freedom”) was occupied on October 15, 1996, when a group of autonomists took over an abandoned 1880s building at Corso Regina Margherita 47 in Turin’s Vanchiglia district. The structure originally housed the Opera Pia Reynero charitable institutions, including an early infant asylum/nursery, before falling into disuse by 1981.
For nearly 30 years, Askatasuna operated as one of Italy’s most enduring self-managed social centers (centro sociale autogestito) in the autonomist / antagonist tradition. It served as a hub for political organizing, cultural events, mutual aid, anti-austerity campaigns, environmental struggles (including No TAV), pro-Palestine actions, housing support, and radical left networking. The space hosted hundreds of collectives, hosted international solidarity events, and became a symbolic “fortress” for Turin’s extra-parliamentary left.
In early 2024, the center reached a collaboration agreement with the municipal administration under Mayor Stefano Lo Russo, which recognized the building as a “common good” (bene comune) and outlined shared management for social activities. This pact was later withdrawn, reportedly after incidents tied to pro-Palestine protests (including attacks on La Stampa newspaper offices and other sites in late 2025).
On December 18, 2025, police (Digos-led operation) evicted and sealed the building, ending the long-term occupation. The move was framed by authorities as enforcement against ongoing antagonism and linked to prior criminal investigations.
The January 31, 2026 Engagement
Thousands converged from across Italy (and some international) for a national demonstration demanding the center’s restitution and protesting state repression of social spaces. Estimates: 15,000–50,000 participants. The march began peacefully but fractured, with masked / black bloc contingents shifting to confrontational tactics near the former Askatasuna site (Corso Regina Margherita).
Engagement profile:
- Projectiles: stones, bottles, fireworks, smoke devices, homemade incendiaries, nail bombs
- Direct assaults: hammer strikes, sticks, kicks on isolated officers
- Property damage: barricades, burning rubbish bins, at least one police armored vehicle set alight
- Notable incident: Lone officer surrounded, beaten / hammered – widely circulated video; PM Giorgia Meloni labeled it “attempted murder”
- Media attack: RAI TV crew targeted by masked individuals
Police response: containment, charges, arrests (initial 3, more via footage). Injuries heavily skewed toward law enforcement.
Aftermath & Political Ripple
Government accelerated a new security decree enabling preventive detentions at protests. PM Meloni condemned rioters as “enemies of the state,” visited injured officers. Mayor Lo Russo and regional President Cirio denounced the violence, emphasizing constitutional values over 30 years of alleged non-compliance.
Anarchist / antagonist sources frame it as legitimate resistance to eviction and broader repression. Mainstream coverage highlights “urban guerrilla” intensity rare in contemporary Italy.
Background Video Sources (Visual Record)
- Fox News clip: violent exchanges, projectiles, fires → https://www.foxnews.com/video/6388676514112
- YouTube – Mirror Now: “Italy: Midnight Mayhem Witnessed In Turin as protesters battle police” → https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6TnTg0buig
- Additional YouTube discussion / footage → https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXympo0gvdM
- Reuters / Anadolu Agency embeds: clashes, fires, arrests
- X raw clips: hammer incident, burning vehicle (search “Torino Askatasuna scontri” or “Turin anarchist clash January 31 2026”)
This episode underscores the collision between long-term squatting / autonomist projects and state reclamation efforts—classic fault line in the ongoing European culture-war skirmishes. Stay frosty.
