Priest attacked outside of parish church in Prato
On 9 September, a priest of the Church of Santa Maria del Soccorso was threatened and attacked outside the church. According to the report, several non-EU citizens had been staying on the steps of the church, and at first threatened him, then proceeded to physical violence with a chair. The bishop of Prato has responded in condemnation to the "regrettable and serious" and expressed deep concern, underlying the gravity of the incident.
The assistant priest of the Church of Santa Maria del Soccorso was threatened and attacked outside the doors of the church on 9 September. While the priest, Don Giorgio, was using his smartphone to film the area outside the church, where a bivouac of several non-EU citizens had been staying. They began making threats at him, telling him not to film them and reportedly making death threats. After the threats were made, one of the individuals hit him in the leg with a chair.
The reports state that Don Giorgio was filming with the intention of documenting the conditions of the area, as some discomfort over the presence of the bivouac had been caused, which is when he was aggressively approached.
The diocesan bishop of Prato, Giovanni Nerbini, expressed his deep concern over the incident and its gravity, he stated: "This is a serious matter" and "a regrettable incident." The bishop further stated that whilst "welcoming is right and proper and is part of the very mission of the Church...welcoming does not mean renouncing respect."
Carabinieri had been notified of the incident, and video surveillance systems were also present to ascertain the details of the attack.
Sources: diocesiprato, italiasette.it
Image: diocesiprato