Security forces deployed massively in Italy on Saturday for protests, which turned out to be small and mostly peaceful after a sweeping crackdown in the wake of violent clashes last weekend.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's hard-right government approved tough security measures this week and police had carried out dozens of searches and arrests in advance of the planned rallies.
A few thousand people rallied in Rome and Milan despite the heavy security, chanting slogans against the government and the police.
Surveillance helicopters hovered over Milan's central Piazza Del Duomo, soldiers in fatigues roamed in groups, and five military vehicles and a water cannon could be seen parked nearby.
"Marching is a right. We need to make our voices heard," Alessio Scimone, a 24-year-old betting shop worker, one of the protesters in Milan, told AFP.
A total of some 3,000 people marched through Milan, bringing traffic in the centre to a standstill. A similar number rallied in Rome in areas near the Colosseum and the central train station in front of lines of police in anti-riot gear.
In Milan, some stores closed early and others boarded their windows following outbreaks of looting in the fashion hub last weekend.
Others remained defiantly open after a call by the city's mayor Giuseppe Sala not to "panic".
"We want to give the message that we are not scared by these kids," said Alessandro Buhne, 30, who works at the Philipp Plein menswear shop.
"Tourists are scared of this situation so we want to give the signal that you are safe if you enter our store," he said.
Stefania Segalina, 55, a volunteer street fundraiser for the charity MSF, said she was relieved clashes had not broken out.
"We were a bit worried but we didn't stop and came out to fundraise as planned," she said.
"We noted a big police presence," she said. "It means you don't feel alone, in case something happens".
After the clashes in Milan last weekend, the government deployed 500 soldiers to the city and approved a decree easing detention rules for minors and imposing fines on their parents for any damage done by them during demonstrations.
Police on Saturday said they had arrested a 30-year-old man suspected of being the figure behind the "October 17 Movement", a group which had called for the protests.
Student groups have been highly critical of the government's public order response and have urged it to address protest demands such as cuts to military spending in favour of education.
The demonstrations are part of a wave of protests by students, truck drivers and farmers over cost of living issues like housing and fuel prices.
The government this week approved financial measures to help businesses dealing with the spike in fuel prices seen after the Middle East war.
The truck blockades that had paralysed southern Italy, leading to acute fuel and food shortages for a week, have now been lifted.
