Italian antisemitism bill sparks Rome protest as UN rapporteur warns it could suppress criticism of Israel

Hundreds of protesters gathered in Rome’s Piazza Montecitorio on Wednesday to oppose an antisemitism bill under consideration in Italy, Al Jazeera reported. Yellow-and-black placards distributed by Amnesty International outside the Italian Parliament read: “Anti-Zionism is not antisemitism.”

The demonstration took place on the same day that the Italian Chamber of Deputies’ Constitutional Affairs Committee considered the bill. The Senate passed it by an overwhelming majority on March 4, and it is now under review in the lower house. A final plenary vote in the Chamber of Deputies has been scheduled for October 2. Under Italy’s constitutional procedure, a bill must pass both chambers in identical form before it can become law.

At the heart of the dispute is the bill’s proposed incorporation into domestic law of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, or IHRA, definition of antisemitism. The IHRA definition classifies as antisemitic “denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, for example, by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor,” as well as “drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis.”

“We are tired of seeing antisemitism instrumentalized to suppress any criticism of the State of Israel and its criminal policies,” Daniele Calò, a member of the Italian Jewish anti-racism group Tikkun, said at the protest. “Faced with this shameful bill, we once again reaffirm forcefully that opposing Zionism is not antisemitism,” he added.

Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territories, told Al Jazeera that legislation equating criticism of a state with antisemitism was problematic. “Any legislation that directly or indirectly equates criticism of a state with antisemitism is problematic and may create more trouble than the problem it is trying to solve,” she said.

Albanese argued that the bill could restrict people’s ability to analyze, document and criticize what she called “the apartheid State of Israel,” and accused Italy of prioritizing the protection of Israel over accountability. “The need to protect the State of Israel from criticism is stronger than the need to deliver justice,” she said. “This is extremely dangerous, because every Jewish person in the world may be seen as some kind of envoy of Israel.” She described Italy under the current government as one of Israel’s most steadfast defenders in Europe.

Al Jazeera reported that Anneliese Baldaccini of Amnesty International Italy said the bill, if passed, would apply to schools, universities, social media platforms and cultural associations. She criticized it as being “based on a definition that censors political criticism.”

Tony La Piccirella, a Palestinian solidarity activist who participated in the Global Sumud Flotilla, said he feared the bill would “provide a legal instrument to attack news organizations, online information platforms and social media, thereby silencing anyone who exposes the genocide and the entire economic system that sustains it.”

The bill, however, has strong support from the leadership of Italy’s Jewish institutions. Noemi Di Segni, president of the Union of Italian Jewish Communities, or UCEI, testified before the Senate’s Constitutional Affairs Committee in January that legislative action against antisemitism was “urgent and unavoidable.” Di Segni was born in Jerusalem, served in the Israeli military and has repeatedly rejected describing Israel’s war in Gaza as genocide. In January 2025, she said terms including “genocide,” “concentration camp,” “starvation,” “Nazi” and “apartheid” should not be used to describe Israel’s conduct.

The bill received cross-party support in the Senate, including votes from some opposition lawmakers. Six senators from the Democratic Party voted in favor, while the party as a whole abstained. The same division has continued in the Chamber of Deputies.

Stefania Ascari of the Five Star Movement is among the bill’s fiercest opponents. Before entering Parliament, she told protesters: “The greatest threat to Jewish people and to the entire world is the terrorist State of Israel.” She accused the bill of targeting “freedom of expression, university autonomy, and the work of associations and nongovernmental organizations.”

The Constitutional Affairs Committee meeting ended without a vote or substantive consideration. According to Al Jazeera, the committee is expected to resume work next week, but the precise timetable remains uncertain. With the final plenary vote set for October 2, Parliament has a narrow window in which to complete the committee stage.

Activists said they would continue gathering outside Parliament and in the streets in the meantime to voice their concerns.