Block everything: 300,000 in the capital for Gaza

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When the march reaches Rome’s main ring road, traffic in the capital has already been blocked for hours. Nonetheless, the people stuck in their cars, in the lane opposite the giant demonstration, are applauding, honking their horns to the rhythm of the slogans, and waving white handkerchiefs. 

It is an unexpected show of support that reveals the depth of the opposition to the genocide in Gaza. The general strike was called by USB, CUB, and other grassroots unions, with the backing of a wide range of anti-war organizations, including student collectives, ANPI, Emergency, Amnesty, and ARCI. 

But the numbers and makeup of the crowd in Rome – at least 300,000 people who marched for seven hours – are the sign of a mobilization that goes far beyond the individual organizing groups.

The procession departs slowly from Termini station after a rally that lasted more than two hours. The front of the march is a line of striking firefighters. “We are UNICEF ambassadors, and we demand rescue for all children. The images from Gaza are heartbreaking,” says Paolo Cergnar, a firefighter and USB unionist. “We rescuers will never be complicit in a genocide, and we are protesting against a government that is trapping us in a cycle of rearmament,” he continues. 

“The call came from the dockworkers in Genoa, and here we are: we’ve shut everything down!” they shout from the lead truck. Behind them are banners from Roman schools, backed by the entire school community: teachers, administrative staff, parents and students. “Teachers know which side to be on,” reads a sign held by Daniela and Francesca.

“Our entire school complex joined the strike,” they explain, surrounded by kids. Maria Luisa, age 14, is marching with the student collectives. Her mother, a freelance communications professional, is also here; she set up an auto-reply email to inform her clients she was on strike. But the Piazza dei Cinquecento is so packed they can't manage to find each other.

Sara and Alessandra arrive from the suburb of Monterotondo with a huge Palestinian flag just as the streets surrounding the square are already full. They aren’t surprised by the constant stream of people. “We expected this. The Palestinian issue is important to everyone, regardless of their political positions,” they say. “It’s the government and the parties that no longer have their finger on the pulse of the country. There is a total disconnect between what Italians think about the genocide and what the politicians are saying.” 

Marika works at a well-known restaurant in the eastern side of Rome and is here with the rest of the staff. Many other bars and shops across the capital are closed, with signs on their security gates reading, “In support of the Global Sumud Flotilla.”

Among the different sections of the march, we see a contingent from the Non Una di Meno feminist movement: “This is a widespread mass mobilization. Strikes are a powerful tool that needs to be given new meaning. Today offers clear proof that it works,” explains Claudia from the movement’s Rome chapter. 

As the march reaches Porta Maggiore, a critical traffic hub, a crew from the private broadcaster Mediaset is reporting live. The camera operators and journalists have Palestinian flags drawn on their arms. “We’re not just here for work,” one of the producers explains. Meanwhile, from a lead truck, a worker from the public broadcaster RAI shouts: “We are not the kind who obey orders! We will boycott every form of pro-Israel propaganda!”

The Roman police initially expected just 8,000 people. At the start of the rally, they revised that number to 20,000. When they adjusted the number again in the early afternoon, speaking of 50,000 attendees, it was clear to everyone that the demonstration was a success beyond all expectations. 

“We are one million across Italy, 300,000 in Rome alone!” the megaphones blared. And the sheer numbers created a shift in the balance of power: the DIGOS special operations police authorized the march to proceed onto the ring road. 

“So much for the government’s security decree,” noted an elderly grassroots union activist. “If there are 300,000 of us, we’re going on the ring road. Let them try and charge us!” Later he emerged from negotiations with the police, satisfied with the deal. “We explained it to them: ‘Look, we’re not bad people, we don’t want to cause any damage, but if there’s a genocide going on, you have to let us pass.’” 

The atmosphere is calm, and the police are not in riot gear. The only exception is in front of The Social Hub, a new luxury student residence in the San Lorenzo neighborhood, which is surrounded by riot shields. The march passes by, greeting the police with whistles. “Isn’t it a waste of public money to defend this thing?” a young activist asks.

Workers from the entertainment and cultural sectors, publishing houses and the film industry are also here. “Many film sets shut down today. The sector is in crisis, but the people who lost their jobs came out too.” 

An executive from Italy’s largest union confederation, the CGIL, is marching as well. “I went on strike last Friday, and I’m on strike again today,” she says. “It’s a personal decision, and I’m not the only one. Many of us are here because this is where we had to be, and our own members were asking us to be here.” A little further on, another official from the same union admits: “We are getting a lot of messages from colleagues who are confused about the CGIL’s decision to call a separate strike earlier. We are here in a personal capacity.”

After hours of marching, during which the crowd never thinned, the head of the procession entered Rome’s La Sapienza University, where one of the morning's many feeder rallies had begun. “There is an entire society here – workers, students, collectives – that has decided to rise up, beyond any affiliation. And now that we’re standing, we won’t sit back down. We have risen up to change things,” proclaimed Guido Lutrario, a USB unionist. 

At the end of the demonstration, university collectives entered the Faculty of Letters to begin an occupation, with a permanent assembly called for the next day. 

The dates for the next protests have already been set: a national demonstration in Rome on October 4 and another in Udine on October 14, ahead of the soccer match between Italy and Israel. At the core of it all is the Global Sumud Flotilla, which could be stopped by the Israeli military at any moment. If anything should happen to it, the promise remains the same: “We’ll shut everything down.”

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Originally published at https://ilmanifesto.it/blocchiamo-tutto-300mila-nella-capitale-per-gaza on 2025-09-23