In the last few hours, several cities in France, Italy, and Albania have been severely affected by violent unrest.
In both countries, hooded youths—many of African origin—have stormed and set fire to buildings, looted shops, attacked police vehicles, and committed all manner of violent acts. One of the most serious incidents took place in France: the Limoges City Hall—a beautiful building constructed between 1876 and 1883 and designated a historical monument in 1975—was stormed, set on fire, and ultimately destroyed. French journalist Denis Carreaux has noted: "According to an internal source, the rioters entered through a basement door located beneath the city council chamber. They reportedly threatened to kill the people who were inside."
Incendie de la mairie de Limoges : d’après une source interne, les émeutiers sont entrés par une porte de cave sous la salle du conseil municipal. Ils auraient menacé de mort les personnes qui se trouvaient à l’intérieur pic.twitter.com/iwqQEIs6lP
— Denis Carreaux (@DenisCarreaux) October 17, 2026
Above, you can see how the arson fire began, and below, you can see how it ended —with the collapse of the building’s main tower.
La mairie de Limoges ravagée par le feu des émeutiers d’ultra gauche.
Un « Notre Dame » républicain.
Allégorie de notre République en feu qui meurt. Nous ne laisserons pas notre pays mourrir sans réagir. Nous sommes des millions à refuser le chaos. Nous l’emporterons ! pic.twitter.com/2gtqRjkK3J
— Eric Ciotti (@eciotti) October 17, 2026
In Paris, there have been instances of attacks on the police, such as the one shown in this video posted by @LucAuffret.
Des véhicules de police sont prises pour cible par la foule dans le secteur République à Paris.#Paris #17octobre pic.twitter.com/yMReav1Tie
— Luc Auffret (@LucAuffret) October 17, 2026
In the French capital, rioters have set cars on fire, as we can see in this other video posted by Auffret:
Plusieurs véhicules de nouveau incendiés près de la Place de la République à Paris.
Des feux également dans 3 bâtiments un peu plus tôt.#17octobre #Paris pic.twitter.com/VVJairxf0G
— Luc Auffret (@LucAuffret) October 17, 2026
And this is what some stores in the country look like, after rioters stormed and looted them:
La situation est totalement hors de contrôle à Paris dans le secteur République.
Des dizaines de boutiques sont pillées depuis plus de deux heures sur le boulevard Magenta.#Paris #17octobre pic.twitter.com/iV95XdDyby
— Luc Auffret (@LucAuffret) October 17, 2026
In Milan, scenes of violence like these have been witnessed, incited by rioters in front of the famous cathedral in that Italian city:
ITALIA SE SUMÓ A LA OLA DE PROTESTAS EN EUROPA: MANIFESTANTES SE ENFRENTARON A LA POLICÍA Y ANUNCIARON UNA HUELGA GENERAL
En una jornada marcada por las violentas protestas en Francia, Italia también registró manifestaciones que terminaron en disturbios y choques entre los… pic.twitter.com/ucCtIrBfUE
— infobae (@infobae) October 17, 2026
Although many media outlets are obscuring the ideological nature of these acts of violence, what we are witnessing is a new example of an alliance between the far left, the pro-Palestinian movement, and Islamism. In fact, Palestinian flags have been visible during these violent mobilizations in both France and Italy. In Italy, the protests have been directed against the conservative government of Giorgia Meloni and have a clear leftist orientation. In France, far-left leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon—head of the party La France Insoumise (LFI)—has been identified as an instigator of these disturbances by both the government and the right-wing opposition. Instead of condemning the acts of violence, Mélenchon has blamed the police for what occurred, in a scandalous display of cynicism.
This is not the first time that this extremist politician has done something like this. In the summer of 2023, Mélenchon incited serious acts of violence in France, blaming the "rich" and justifying the unrest by claiming it was "class struggle." For far less than this, any right-wing party would have already been outlawed in France at the initiative of President Emmanuel Macron; yet, it seems the French far-left—and LFI in particular—has a license to set cities ablaze without facing any legal consequences. Let us also recall that three years ago, Mélenchon refused to condemn Hamas’s terrorist attack against Israel—the largest antisemitic massacre since the Holocaust. A few weeks after that massacre, Mélenchon refused to condemn antisemitism, in a clear bid to capture the Islamist vote in France.
We must not overlook the strategic use of these disturbances. The Kremlin has spent many years promoting far-left parties in Europe with the aim of destabilizing countries that belong to the European Union and NATO. Furthermore, let us remember that Russia is one of the primary allies of the Iranian dictatorship—a major promoter of Islamist terrorism in general, and Palestinian terrorism in particular (having long served as the principal backer of criminal groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah).
We may well be witnessing a form of hybrid warfare, encouraged by Moscow and Tehran and unleashed by some of their proxies within the West; yet, because this involves the far left, Islamism, and the Palestinian cause, many media outlets prefer not to identify who is behind these events—or who might be pulling the strings—as if this wave of unrest, occurring on the very same day across cities in two European NATO-member countries, were merely a random, spontaneous occurrence. Europe persists in turning a blind eye to a problem that grows more serious by the day—a problem fueled, in large part, by the inability of many politicians, media figures, and intellectuals to recognize the origins and the political and ideological inspiration behind these violent movements.
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Main photo: Ville de Limoges. The destruction of the Limoges City Hall building during violent far-left protests in France.
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