Genoa gets million-dollar aid package

The area behind the barricades was left unscathed

The Italian Government has pledged a 15bn lire ($6.7m) emergency package for Genoa in the wake of the devastating riots during the G8 summit.

They closed the red zone and gave the rest of the city to the protesters like meat to a dog

Genoa resident Gianni Guarnieri

Thousands of protesters went on the rampage at the weekend as world leaders met to discuss an agenda of world poverty and globalisation. Early estimates put the total damage at 100bn lire ($45m).

Genoa had already received around $110m ahead of the summit to improve the city's appearance and infrastructure and to fund security measures.

While the area directly around the summit venue came off unscathed, surrounding districts have been devastated by the violence.

Interior minister under fire

One protester was killed, 500 people were injured and 200 were arrested. Up to 2,000 people did not even make it to Genoa as border police turned them back at Italy's frontiers.

Ministers on Monday gave their backing to the Interior Minister, Claudio Scajola, who has faced calls to resign over his handling of the summit policing.

But opposition leader Francesco Rutelli insisted that Mr Scajola should stand down.

Genoa residents are venturing out to observe the damage

"The interior minister must present his resignation in parliament today and an inquiry committee must be created," Mr Rutelli was quoted as saying.

Police carried out another series of raids on Monday, arresting 30 more people they accuse of involvement in the violence.

In Sunday's raids on the offices of the Genoa Social Forum (GSF), an umbrella organisation for protest groups, 92 people were arrested. Police said they found knives, sledgehammers and a pickaxe. Sixty-six protesters were injured.

The GSF raids were condemned by some left-wing members of parliament, including Gavino Angius of the Democrats of the Left party.

"[They] bundle everything together, tending to put hundreds of thousands of young people - citizens who demonstrated absolutely peacefully - on the same level with gangs which devastated the city without being disturbed," he said.

Barricades lifted

During the summit, metal screens and containers kept protesters away from a high-security "red zone" around the Palazzo Ducale where leaders of the world's seven most industrialised countries and Russia met from 20-22 July.

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That left central Genoa a virtual ghost town, while Europe's worst riots for years raged outside.

"They closed the red zone and gave the rest of the city to the protesters like meat to a dog," said Genoa resident, Gianni Guarnieri.

As the barricades came down on Sunday, locals who had been holed up in their homes took advantage of the sudden calm to stroll through the city centre.

Banks have been gutted and cash-points ripped from the walls. Burnt-out cars line the streets.

Leaders condemned the violence and complained that it had overshadowed the summit agenda.

They announced their determination to continue with the summits in the future, although delegations for next year's meeting in Canada are to be scaled down.

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Map shows "red zone", the exclusion area surrounding the Palazzo Ducale summit venue, and the outer "yellow zone", which was meant to be free of protesters but was breached.