’A Profound Tragedy’: Protests in Italy over Moroccan’s Death
- On Sunday, July 19, 42-year-old Moroccan-born Abderrahim Fakir died in Bologna, Italy, during a police restraint incident, triggering violent anti-police protests on Monday that left 64 officers injured.
- Footage filmed shortly after 12:30pm Sunday shows two police officers and a civilian restraining Fakir for four minutes, prompting Morocco's foreign ministry to urge a 'thorough investigation' into the death.
- During a July 21 news conference hosted by Senator Ilaria Cucchi, lawyer Fabio Anselmo cited a 2026 European Court of Human Rights ruling involving Riccardo Magherini to challenge current practices.
- Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned the clashes as 'unacceptable,' while legal scholars warn that the new Article 45-bis procedure could make it harder to hold officers to account.
- As demonstrators reached the Prefecture on Monday, clashes escalated with police deploying tear gas and baton charges, resulting in extensive damage to Bologna's historic centre.
32 Articles
32 Articles
The circumstances surrounding the death of Abderrahim Fakir, a 42-year-old self-employed man of Moroccan origin, following a police intervention on July 19 in a street on the outskirts of Bologna, while he was in a state of mental distress, are beginning to become clearer. According to initial autopsy findings, the techniques used by two young police officers, aged 23 and 28, to restrain him on the ground may have been fatal.
Moroccan worker dies after police pin him face-down during arrest in Bologna, sparking protests across Italy
The killing of Abderrahim Fakir is the product of escalating police-state repression as Meloni’s government intensifies authoritarian rule against growing working-class resistance.
They executed him. This is a crime against humanity, a terrible crime. Today it's his turn, tomorrow it could happen to our children.
Anger is simmering in Italy after the death of a Moroccan man pinned to the ground by two police officers during an arrest in Bologna, an incident that has sparked outrage among a segment of the public. Analysis with Caroline de Camaret, editor-in-chief of the Europe desk at France 24.
Abderrahim Fakir died after he was visibly altered to be immobilized while asking for help. Family demands justice, but government refuses that police violence is a systemic problem.
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