The Italian police have searched properties of 17 members of a Telegram channel promoting radical opposition to COVID-19 vaccination and green passes, accusing them of crime incitement and disobedience of law
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th November, 2021) The Italian police have searched properties of 17 members of a Telegram channel promoting radical opposition to COVID-19 vaccination and green passes, accusing them of crime incitement and disobedience of law.
The Italian channel gained popularity in August, gathering over 40,000 subscribers who used it to distribute calls for protests against digital certificates which show that the holder has either been vaccinated against COVID-19 or tested negative or recently recovered from the infection. The passes are currently required in Italy for long-distance travel, mass events and entertainment venues, dining indoors in restaurants, engaging in cultural and leisure activities, as well as for certain workplaces.
The police carried out round-the-clock monitoring of the channel and documented "systematic incitement of use of weapons and grave offenses against the highest officials, including Prime Minister Mario Draghi. The other targets unearthed during the monitoring were police officers, doctors, scientists, journalists and other public figures accused of "enslavement" and "collaboration with the dictatorship" in the government, the police said.
The operation took place in 16 big Italian cities, according to the statement. Many of the accused were already known to the police because of previous crimes. Others were not prosecuted but "fell into a spiral of online hate," the statement read.
The controversial channel closed down in September, as Telegram founder Pavel Durov said that it violates community rules by inciting violence against doctors involved in vaccination campaigns and disclosing their personal information.
