Effigy of American Soldier Burned in Rome

Thousands of Italian pacifists demonstrated for peace in the Middle East last week. In the northern city of Milan, 50,000 marched in the city center, their slogans calling for a two-state solution in Israel. There were no incidents in Milan, but in Rome, the capital city of Italy, things took an ugly turn.

20,000 demonstrators showed up in Rome, but the peace protesters were all but peaceful. Three puppets representing American, Israeli and Italian soldiers were burned along the Fori Imperiali, a wide avenue leading to the Colosseum, to the shouts of "Israel will burn". Youngsters wearing Kaffiahs, the Arabic head garb, hassled members of the media who were trying to capture the soldier-burning on film.

Most of the banners carried during the demonstration were from pro-Palestinian organizations, but some also belonged to Italian communist parties. Some banners criticized Telecom's business ties with Israel, proclaiming 'Blood Red Telephones'