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Genoa: Police raid on independent media centre and school - many injured

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Country/Region

01 July 2001

Just after midnight, early Sunday 22 July hundreds of police in riot gear backed by helicopter and water cannon raided the independent media centre working with the Genoa Social Forum and a nearby school.

These reports are presented here unedited:

1. Later report from Indymedia, Sunday 22 July

Police Raid IMC Italy & GSF, Steal Legal Documentation; Leave 20 Seriously Wounded

update 15:33 GMT july 22

Reports are coming in that police are beating up people dressed in black in Piazzate Kennedy. The atmosphere is full of tension again. Information from hospital Galleria [main] source: doctor at hospital: 29 people wounded, 3 serious, 1 very serious. British consul visited him in hospital. There is a big police presence in hospitals; people in the hospitals have been reluctant to give details. 1 US 1 swiss, remainder swiss/german. San Martino hospital: transfering people directly to jails/courts (unclear which) wounded include broken arms, nose, head injuries. (men and women, more men). The doctor gave imc this information only after pressured to by IMC reporter inside hospital.

update 14:00 Italy time: in Charles hospital only: wounded: 14 German, 1 English, 5 from Canada/US/Turkey. Being transferred directly to Jails. They are seriously wounded included broken bones and should not be moved.

update 1:20 GMT July 22: Cell phone call ins, and indy reports are keeping us updated with events from Genova. An hour ago, POLICE STORMED the building that hosted the IMC with tear gas and batons, and the building opposite that hosted other GSF groups. About ten people escaped from windows. The police held people and took IDs. According to the medics on the scene, there have been approximately 20 seriously injured people from police violence but that no one was dead. Blood which stained the streets outside the imc quickly disappeared. Numbers of people arrested have not been relased yet.

The school opposite the IMC building was where the worst police violence occured. Floors are covered in blood. Police assault lasted over 45 minutes... The people in the street were chanting en masse "fascist" and "bastardo". The wounded were carried out on stretchers continuously and taken to ambulances that arrived with the police. Police sealed off street by surprise and a helicopter remained low overhead like a military operation. A temporary hospital was set up on the 1st floor of the IMC building to treat wounded.

2. From Global Resistance:

[00:56] Police have baton charged INSIDE the Media Centre; 3 people have
been brought outside on stretchers
[00:41] Italian police are confiscating floppy and videos from media centre.
RadioGap was cut for more than 15 minutes. Now restarted broadcasting.
[00:07] The Media Centre in Via Cesare Battisti in Genoa has been invaded by
police, they beat up people inside; a protestor lies unconscious on the
ground outside; Radio gap italian web radio offline

3. On the spot report by BBC news reporter detailing police raid on school - text below, link to BBC online site: BBC report

BBC: Not so "minor" raid, injuries

11:02am Sun Jul 22 '01

In contrast to CNN report, this BBC eyewitness tells the truth of the matter

By Bill Hayton in Genoa

Hundreds of Italian police backed by a helicopter raided two schools being used by campaigners around midnight local time (2200 GMT). I was visiting one of them. It was being used by the campaigners to put material up onto the internet.

Along with about 100 protesters, I was herded into a corridor and made to wait while police searched the premises for weapons. To my knowledge, they found nothing.

They left after an Italian MP arrived and told them to go.

Across the road though it was a different story.

The school there was being used to train campaigners in non-violent direct action. The protesters may have put up some resistance but the police response was heavy and dramatic. The occupants say they were made to stand against walls and then beaten by four policemen. Campaigners are convinced the police were taking revenge

Evenly spaced pools of blood now lie on the corridor floor. Around 20 people were taken to hospital.

I saw some of them being carried out unconscious. Another 20 walked out with severe bruising.

They left behind hundreds of shocked and angry young campaigners convinced this was police
revenge for the riots of the past two days.

4. Indymedia - Italy report, see Indy Media

"The storming of the police into the building that hosted the GSF media center (press office, Indymedia, Radio Gap, ManifestoCarta, ...) and into the building opposite to it destroys the constitution of the Italian state. Beside the Government choice to repress in an anti-constitutional way the GSF, the police was surely not looking only for photos and videos showing the very brutal events of the last few days.

They were especially looking for an scape-goat. They took numerous files, including the data-banks of the volounteer lawyers that were assisting legally some demonstrators. But what is worse is the the incredible violence with which the police went against the 50 people who were sleeping in the gymnasium opposite to the media center. The signs are clear: BLOOD EVERYWHERE, BROKEN GLASS, DOORS AND WINDOWS DESTROYED.

The police has taken away about 50 people (nearly all were first transfered to the hospital) accusing them of belonging to the "Black Bloc"."

5. Police attack at IMC-Genoa and Radio Gap and GSF(Eng-NL) by Joeri, Jul 21 '01

"Phone call from Genova:

Got phone call from Han, indymedia.be, at 12:20. He was outside the center, describing it surrounded by massive police forces, helicopter and armoured water canon vehicles.

According to several testimonies published on IMCs, police is searching for the proof that they were in the Black Blocks, police taking away video tapes.