Italy: Man Dies After Police Restrain Him, Protests Erupt

Protests in Bologna, Italy, turned violent after a Moroccan-Italian man died while being restrained by police. Officers used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowd. The death of Abderrahim Fakir, a 42-year-old business owner, has sparked outrage. Human rights activists and opposition parties are demanding answers. Fakir, who lived in Italy since age five, had heart problems and asthma. A widely shared video shows him repeatedly screaming “aiuto, aiuto, basta” (help, help, enough) as two officers sat on him while paramedics watched. The video then shows officers tying his ankles after he stopped moving. They only checked his vital signs later. Prosecutors have opened an investigation and requested the officers' body camera footage. Police responded to a call about Fakir’s erratic behavior on Sunday afternoon. They said they used pepper spray and tried to handcuff him, telling ambulance staff he was having a “psychiatric episode.” “You cannot die like this,” said his sister, Khadija. “The police must protect us. If someone is agitated, you calm him down… not kill him like a dog.” The case has drawn comparisons to the murder of George Floyd in the US and tactics used by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Italy’s Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi defended the police. “Those who insult the police show no trust in our law enforcement,” he said. But Senator Ilaria Cucchi, whose brother died in custody, called the police’s actions “inhumane.” She accused Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government of fostering a climate of violence through “policies full of hate and racism.” Lawyer Barbara Spinelli, who helped Fakir renew his residence permit, described him as “a very kind, polite, and respectful person.” She added, “I told him, ‘We are in a democratic country. The police here follow the rules.’ I don’t know how I can ever tell anyone not to be afraid again.”