Meloni attacks judge’s decision to free alleged administrator of the Movimento 17 ottobre social media pages, while critics say the group was created after the violence.Italy's prime minister Giorgia Meloni has described as “shameful” a Milan judge’s decision not to validate the arrest of Youssef Siher, the man accused of running the online group Movimento 17 ottobre.Judge Tiziana Landoni refused to confirm the detention of Siher, a 30-year-old Italian researcher and freelance journalist of Moroccan origin, who had been held in Milan’s San Vittore prison. He is accused of incitement to commit crimes aggravated by terrorist aims, and of violent participation in public demonstrations, an offence introduced by the newly enacted security decree. Una decisione vergognosa https://t.co/8FqtPeTdiH — Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) October 28, 2026 He will be released but remains under investigation, along with his wife, who was not detained. No precautionary measures were imposed. Prosecutor Francesca Crupi had asked for him to be held in custody, citing a concrete risk of flight. According to Italian media, the judge found there were no serious indications of guilt. The background On Saturday 17 October, around 5,000 people took part in a cost-of-living demonstration called “Italia in piazza” in Milan. While the march was peaceful, groups of hooded people began vandalising streets and looting shops around the Duomo and Corso Vittorio Emanuele. Similar clashes took place in Turin and Bologna. Disorder resumed in central Milan the next day. More than 200 people were taken to the police station, almost all of them minors. Police identified Siher as the administrator of the group’s Telegram channel and Instagram page, and he was detained on Saturday 24 October. Prosecutors called him the “mind” behind the movement. Italian media reported that he is linked to pro-Palestinian groups, and he appeared at a July 2025 demonstration in Milan as a representative of the Giovani Palestinesi di Milano. The reaction In a video on social media, Meloni said the ruling was an “unbearable” slight to police and investigators. She said the page “incited” the demonstrations that led to the devastation of shops in Milan. Deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini called the release “incredible”. He asked whether the judge would pay for any new damage out of her own pocket, starting with Friday’s marches in Milan. Fellow deputy prime minister Antonio Tajani said freeing Siher endangered national security. The government’s account has been challenged. Newspaper Il Fatto Quotidiano reported that the page was created at 19.59 on 18 October, after the worst of the weekend’s violence, and said Meloni’s claim that Siher organised the demonstrations was therefore inaccurate. Intelligence sources cited by La Repubblica newspaper said he tried to lead the movement only after the riots of 17 and 18 October, not before. Photo credit: Marco Iacobucci Epp / Shutterstock.com

Italy's prime minister Giorgia Meloni has described as “shameful” a Milan judge’s decision not to validate the arrest of , the man accused of running the online group Movimento 17 ottobre. Judge Tiziana Landoni refused to confirm the detention of Siher, a 30-year-old Italian researcher and freelance journalist of Moroccan origin, who had been held in Milan’s San Vittore prison. He is accused of incitement to commit crimes aggravated by terrorist aims, and of violent participation in public demonstrations, an offence introduced by the newly enacted security decree. Una decisione vergognosa https://t.co/8FqtPeTdiH — Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) He will be released but remains under investigation, along with his wife, who was not detained. No precautionary measures were imposed. Prosecutor Francesca Crupi had asked for him to be held in custody, citing a concrete risk of flight. According to Italian media, the judge found there were no serious indications of guilt. On Saturday 17 October, around 5,000 people took part in a cost-of-living demonstration called “Italia in piazza” in Milan. While the march was peaceful, groups of hooded people began around the Duomo and Corso Vittorio Emanuele. Similar clashes took place in Turin and Bologna. Disorder resumed in central Milan the next day. More than 200 people were taken to the police station, almost all of them minors. Police identified Siher as the administrator of the group’s Telegram channel and Instagram page, and he was detained on Saturday 24 October. Prosecutors called him the “mind” behind the movement. Italian media reported that he is linked to pro-Palestinian groups, and he appeared at a July 2025 demonstration in Milan as a representative of the Giovani Palestinesi di Milano. In a video on social media, Meloni said the ruling was an “unbearable” slight to police and investigators. She said the page “incited” the demonstrations that led to the devastation of shops in Milan. Deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini called the release “incredible”. He asked whether the judge would pay for any new damage out of her own pocket, starting with Friday’s marches in Milan. Fellow deputy prime minister Antonio Tajani said freeing Siher endangered national security. The government’s account has been challenged. Newspaper Il Fatto Quotidiano reported that the page was created at 19.59 on 18 October, after the worst of the weekend’s violence, and said Meloni’s claim that Siher organised the demonstrations was therefore inaccurate. Intelligence sources cited by La Repubblica newspaper said he tried to lead the movement only after the riots of 17 and 18 October, not before. Photo credit: Marco Iacobucci Epp / Shutterstock.com