Overview
- Terminal operator Sapir declined to handle the shipment after a formal request, and the two containers were turned away from the Darsena San Vitale terminal and removed by truck.
- The move followed a letter from the mayor, the provincial president and the Emilia-Romagna president urging a stop to arms transits to conflict zones and seeking a human-rights clause in Sapir’s code of ethics.
- Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the cargo was not Italian-made and noted that departures from ports do not require his ministry’s authorization.
- Opposition leaders in PD and M5S supported the local action, calling for a government tally of similar cases and advocating an embargo on arms to Israel.
- Unresolved issues include the shipment’s precise origin and custody chain for transiting armaments, as well as the legal scope of local authorities’ power over port concessionaires.