Southern Italy truckers ease fuel protests as Meloni government lines up aid

Truck drivers’ protests that have seriously disrupted fuel and food supplies across southern Italy were easing on Thursday, as Giorgia Meloni’s government lined up aid and hardened its stance on roadblocks (Reuters). Hauliers have blocked roads and motorways since last week over high fuel prices; roadblocks were set to be lifted in Sicily after government talks, while Calabria’s drivers suspended their protest (Reuters).

In Campania — “severe disruption” to supermarkets, petrol stations and hospitals, deputy infrastructure minister Edoardo Rixi told RAI — hauliers’ spokesman Vincenzo Parisi said he hoped roadblocks could be lifted later on Thursday (Reuters). In Naples, fuel shortages were hindering doctors reaching clinics and ambulances answering emergencies, said Bruno Zuccarelli of the physicians’ order (Reuters).

Not every blockade is lifting: drivers at Gela in Sicily are continuing “until there are concrete results”, with dozens of lorries parked on the SS 117 bis Gela-Catania roundabout (Anadolu). Interior minister Matteo Piantedosi has ordered prefects and police chiefs to act against illegal closures and watch for criminal infiltration (Anadolu).

La Doria has stopped production at seven southern plants and put half its workforce on forced leave (Reuters); around 500 lorries were moving under police escort near Naples, and Crotone and Reggio Calabria airports ran short of aviation fuel (trans.info). Meloni was due to chair a cabinet meeting to approve a decree combining transport aid — including compensation for high diesel costs — with farm support (Reuters), while deputy PM Salvini is open to a diesel price cap (Reuters, 21 Oct).

Sources

• Reuters — “Southern Italy truckers ease protests as government lines up aid” (Rome, 22 Oct 2026, by Francesca Piscioneri and Alvise Armellini): https://www.reuters.com/world/southern-italy-truckers-ease-protests-government-lines-up-aid-2026-10-22/
• Anadolu / anews — “Truck drivers’ blockades raise supply concerns across southern Italy” (22 Oct 2026, 12:11): https://www.anews.com.tr/europe/2026/10/22/truck-drivers-blockades-raise-supply-concerns-across-southern-italy
• Reuters via WYSL — same story text for cross-check: https://www.wysl1040.com/southern-italy-truckers-ease-protests-as-government-lines-up-aid/
• trans.info — “Truck blockade paralyses southern Italy: airport fuel shortages, factory shutdowns and police escorts”: https://trans.info/en/truck-blockade-paralyses-southern-italy-airport-fuel-shortages-factory-shutdowns-and-police-escorts-510045
• Reuters — “Italian retailers warn of food shortages caused by truck drivers’ protest” (21 Oct 2026): https://www.reuters.com/world/italian-retailers-warn-food-shortages-caused-by-truck-drivers-protest-2026-10-21/