Premier Giorgia Meloni on Wednesday got out of her car and stopped Albanian police who were roughing up an opposition politicians who had raised a placard in front of the vehicle saying her visit to a new Italian-run migrant processing centre in the port of Shengjin was an electoral stunt ahead of this weekend's European elections.
Riccardo Magi, leader of the + Europa (More Europe) party, stopped the car carrying Meloni and Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama by stepping out in front of it raising the placard saying "a billion (euro) electoral hotspot".
Albanian police officers pulled him out of the way and roughed him up, so much so that he later showed blood on his shirt near his armpits.
"If this is the way they treat me, just think o the poor devils who are going to be hosted in these centres," said Magi.
Meloni, who stopped the officers from manhandling Magi by saying, in English, "please leave him", denied this conjecture and said she had "full solidarity" with the opposition party leader.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
