ITALIAN Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has called for a full investigation into the death of a man during an arrest in Bologna, while condemning anti-police protests that left dozens of officers injured.

Abderrahim Fakir, a Moroccan-born man who ran a small removals and cleaning business, died on Sunday after police were called to the Pilastro neighbourhood on the outskirts of the northern city to deal with a man who was alleged to be behaving aggressively.

The incident has been likened to George Floyd’s murder in the United States six years ago.

Ms Meloni said: “It is essential that any responsibilities be ascertained with the utmost rigor. The truth must be pursued thoroughly, without prejudice and without leniency toward anyone.” 

The far-right premier also denounced violence against police during a protest in central Bologna late on Monday which left 56 officers injured.

The demonstration turned violent when a group of protesters threw firecrackers, bottles and chairs at police, who responded with tear gas and water cannon, according to Italian media reports.

“Those who chose to use this incident as a pretext to lay waste to the city, attack officers and spread violence were not seeking the truth: they were seeking confrontation,” Ms Meloni said.

A video of Mr Fakir’s final moments, widely shared on social media, shows him face down on the ground while two officers restrain him. 

In the video, Mr Fakir repeatedly calls out “aiuto, aiuto, basta” (“help, help, that’s enough”) as the officers sit on him and ambulance workers look on.

“They killed my brother in cold blood, I want justice,” Mr Fakir’s sister, Khadija, told reporters during a protest in Pilastro on Sunday.

At Monday’s protest, Mr Fakir’s niece Yossra Fakir addressed the crowd to say: “We will continue to demand the truth for him and for our family, so that no-one else ever has to go through what he went through.”