punching and kicking some students

A boy with a school backpack on his shoulders is on the ground on the asphalt, an adult kicks him, a scene of extreme ferocity. At least four adults collide with teenagers, punch them in the face.

These are the images of a short video shot this morning in via della Colonna in front of the Michelangelo classical high school in Florence.

A fight, a punitive expedition? It would be, according to the first stories, an attack suffered by the students of the collective Sum e carried out by militants of the extreme right.

Of course, the kids who succumb to the fight were in front of their school, just before the bell to enter the classroom. What were those adults doing in via della Colonna instead? If asked by the head teacher of Michelangelo, Professor Rita Gaeta, who arrived shortly after the attack, asked the staff present in via della Colonna to “report everything they saw”.

The video of the attack

In the video, amidst the kicks and punches, a woman appears with books in hand, probably a teacher, who intervenes in the clashes shouting «but what are you doing?». Gaeta confirms: «They told me that a teacher was involved in the clash, or at least that she intervened. You are in class now, I’ll hear from you later too ». Of course it is her, she still says: “As soon as I arrived at school and as soon as I found out, I called the Digos”.

The first reconstruction

And just second a first reconstruction of the Digoswho has been carrying out investigations for hours, a right-wing militant group he would do a leaflet. A flyer just a stone’s throw from the school. A leafleting that no one had announced at the police station. During the morning a group of students from the collective would have had a discussion with the other group who at that point – according to the video – would attacked the boys. The news of the attack reached the police at a later time, since no one had announced any action. A few minutes later, the investigators intervened on the spot they are identifying the alleged attackers.

Mayor’s comment

In the morning comes the harsh comment of the mayor of Florence Nardella: «A squad attack of this gravity and in front of a school is a fact intolerable – he comments – I spoke to the Quaestor so that clarity may be clarified as soon as possible and those responsible are identified. Florence and the school do not deserve such violence”.

Numerous comments arrive on the matter, even from politicians at national level, but first of all from the representatives of the students in the school council who reconstruct the incident: «In front of the school there were two boys who they flied for Casaggi. Some students went to ask them questions. In response they took some shoving, but suddenly 5-6 men between 25 and 30 years old – hidden until then – popped up and started with the aggression. A terrifying thing, a premeditated attack»

Brothers of Italy: «Profound regret»

The coordination of the Brothers of Italy in Florence “expresses deep regret for the clashes that took place this morning near the Michelangiolo high school and condemns all forms of violence by anyone exercised. Politics must be an instrument of confrontation, even harsh and harsh, but it cannot and must never go beyond physical confrontation and limitation of the freedom of expression of others. And nobody misses the season of political violence that has marked the history of Italy for too long». To say it Jacopo Cellai, Fdi coordinator in Florence, in a note in which he specifies: «At the same time we hope that the episode is clarified with the correct reconstruction of the facts and we hope that everyone, especially those who hold institutional positions as did the mayor of Florence, have the same shrewdness in commenting on what happened without pointing out responsibilities before they are ascertained, which only risks fueling further an already too heavy climate ».

Bonaccini’s tweet

“I strongly condemn the unworthy attacks carried out in Florence by fascist militants”. The president of Emilia-Romagna, running for the secretariat of the Democratic Party, Stefano Bonaccini, takes a position on the events in Florence, where this morning a group of students from the Michelangelo high school were attacked outside the school by a group of far-right militants . “Every gesture of violence, of whatever political color, must always be immediately condemned,” Bonaccini tweeted.