by InTrieste
Interview: FVG governor, Massimiliano Fedriga
As Italy’s national team prepares to take the field in Udine today, security measures across the city have been significantly strengthened amid concerns over a large demonstration expected to attract around 10,000 participants — an unprecedented turnout for the Friulian capital.
Authorities are less preoccupied with the football match itself, for which about 8,000 tickets have been sold, than with the march scheduled to begin this afternoon. Law enforcement agencies fear possible violent infiltrations among demonstrators arriving from other parts of Italy as well as from neighboring Austria and Slovenia.
The protest is set to start at 4:30 p.m. in Piazza della Repubblica. Organizers have urged participants to gather along Viale Leopardi to avoid crowding Via Roma, where the march will begin. The route will continue through Viale Europa Unita, Piazzale D’Annunzio, Via Aquileia, Via Vittorio Veneto, Piazza Duomo, Via Cavour, and Via Manin, ending in Piazza Primo Maggio.
Prefect Massimo Lione has imposed several restrictions from 8 a.m. to midnight, including a ban on the sale, serving, and consumption of food and beverages in glass, ceramic, or aluminum containers.
Tensions rose after the Comitato Pro Palestina Udine criticized the decision to house the Israeli national team in a centrally located hotel on Viale Ledra. The organization described the move as “disconcerting,” warning that the demonstration will pass nearby. The hotel is now heavily guarded, surrounded by two-meter-high barriers and monitored by law enforcement.
Enhanced security is also in place around the Friuli Stadium, where anti-terrorism units and a pre-screening zone have been established. Spectators entering the Rizzi area venue will be subject to metal detector checks.
A planned strike by the local police union, Sapol FVG, was averted after a meeting at the Prefecture, though the union has maintained its state of agitation.
With the match and demonstration occurring on the same day, Udine is bracing for a tense afternoon — one that will test the city’s capacity to balance civic expression and public safety.
