A 60-year-old rabbi was violently assaulted and insulted by a group of three young men reportedly of Arab origin Wednesday while he waited at a bus stop near the Jewish quarter in the Italian city of Milan.
Italian outlets detailed that the assault occurred on Wednesday evening at a bus stop in Milan’s Bande Nere. Public broadcaster Rai explained the rabbi was recognized by the assailants via his clothing.
The group kicked and punched the man and took away his hat before stomping and spitting on it. The rabbi was able to take a photo and a video of the three assailants as they fled toward the Bande Nere subway station.
He reported the attack to local police before being taken to a hospital.
Italian law enforcement has reportedly identified the three suspects as young men born in Italy, of North African origin, and between the ages of 19 and 22 — each with their own known criminal record. The group is said to reside in the Milan province and frequently travel to the city to commit crimes.
At press time Thursday morning, officials from Italy’s General Investigations and Special Operations Division (Digos) have reportedly arrested a 20 year-old Tunisian man, who is presumed to be the main assailant of the rabbi and the man who “turned words into actions,” attacking the victim. Rai described the other two suspects as a 19 year-old of Tunisian origin, and a 22 year-old of Moroccan origin. According to Rai, Milan’s local government will issue an expulsion order to the three young men.
Speaking with the news service ANSA, Walker Meghnagi, the president of the Milan Jewish Community, said, “I feel ashamed of my country for what has happened, we have never seen anything this violent.”
Demonstrators carrying Palestinian flags take part in a protest against the 1004 bill aimed at combating antisemitism in Milan, Italy, on September 9, 2026. The bill, which adopts the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism, was approved by the Senate in March. (Piero Cruciatti/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“Nothing this violent has ever happened before. They kicked and punched him, took his hat off, stomped on him, and spat on him. From what I’ve been told, they were three people of Arab descent,” Meghnagi said.
Several members of the Italian government have condemned the violent antisemitic attack in the following hours since the rabbi was assaulted by the three young men. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her solidarity to the assaulted rabbi and all the Jewish community in Milan in an official statement published by the Italian government.
“This was a cowardly and unacceptable act, which I condemn in the strongest possible terms. Anti-Semitic hatred is a scourge that we cannot and will not tolerate in any form, and we will continue to combat it with determination,” Meloni said.
In a social media post, Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini described the incident as “Very serious. Terrible. Unacceptable.”
“Scenes of antisemitic hatred and violence that we thought had been consigned forever to history, and that instead return tragically to our cities,” Salvini wrote.
“For months we have been denouncing a climate of growing antisemitism, too often underestimated, justified, or fueled even by certain political factions with dangerous words and ambiguities,” he continued. “We cannot and must not get used to all this.”