A 26-year-old Senegalese migrant was arrested after attacking a pair of Italian police officers with an iron bar in the city of Turin while allegedly yelling “Allahu Akbar” as he attacked them.
The 26-year-old was later identified as illegal Senegalese migrant Ndiaye Migui who attacked the two police officers over the weekend along the via Cuneo wounding the two officers, with one suffering trauma to the head and the other injuries to his hand as a result of the attack, Il Giornale reports.
The newspaper also added that the incident is not the first time the 26-year-old has been in trouble with Italian police. He is said to have committed a similar attack in late March against a different police officer in the same area, which is in close proximity to the makeshift shack where he is said to have been living.
Following the March attack, the local prosecutor pushed for the release of Migui, despite officers demanding that he remain in jail. The prosecutor later released the Senegalese national despite the fact he had already had two deportation notices given prior demanding that he leave Italy.
Italian Union of Police Officers (SIAP) national secretary Pietro Di Lorenzo commented on the growing trend of violence toward police officers saying, “In recent weeks there has been a crescendo of violence that must worry everyone. It is not acceptable in any way to grant hospitality and protection to those who could kill a common citizen or a policeman.”
He then went on to label the attack, “an indication of an absolute lack of fear and respect for the police.”
The attack follows other similar attacks by migrants toward police, including an incident in 2017 that saw Guinean migrant Saidou Mamoud Diallo attempt to attack officers with a knife. After the attack, the migrant shouted “I want to die for Allah” as he was being escorted into custody.
Another incident occurred last year when police in Pisa were attacked by a Senegalese migrant gang during an attempt to seize counterfeit items being sold on the street. Several police officers were hospitalised as a result of the migrant attack and populist Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini to comment saying, “expulsions for illegal immigrants and restoring a climate of legality to our cities is my goal.”