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Report finds evidence of abuse of anti-G8 activists

They were kicked, punched, slapped, tripped, clubbed and dragged by their hair.

Those are some of the abuses meted out to about 150 detained protesters by authorities following the G8 summit in Genoa in July 2001, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors in Genoa released a 534-page report Saturday detailing "inhuman" and "degrading" behavior by police officers, corrections officers and doctors at the Bolzaneto police garrison, Italian media reported Sunday.

Some of the detainees also were hit in the groin and were forced to scream the fascist salute, "Viva il Duce," a reference to Fascist leader Benito Mussolini.

The prosecutors also said the abuse included forcing at least one detainee on his hands and knees and making him bark like a dog, and the threat of sexual assault, according to Italian news agency ANSA. Female prisoners also were forced to take their clothes off in front of male officers.

The report denounced what it said was a violation of human rights, but stopped short of describing the abuse as torture.

It found "grave jeopardy to people's rights" at the hands of 15 police officers, 16 corrections officials, 11 Carabinieri paramilitary police and five doctors, the daily Corriere della Sera and ANSA reported.

The prosecutors suggest their findings should be presented to the European Court of Human Rights, according to the Corriere.

About 500 people were taken to the garrison following a raid against anti-globalization protesters during the 2001 summit, according to the newspaper.

Those held at Bolzaneto -- many of them from other European countries and the US -- said they were physically and mentally abused. They said they were deprived of food, water and medical care. Police watched when they used the toilet.

Foreign detainees said it took days to see their lawyers and consular officials. Some European countries lodged formal protests, and the US expressed concern.

The prosecutors found that the detainees were insulted, kicked and pushed when they arrived at Bolzaneto and that the abuses continued throughout their detention.

The pre-dawn raid on the Diaz school in Genoa, which housed many protesters, was one of the most controversial episodes of the July 2001 summit.

Some protesters said they were attacked as they slept. Police said they were acting on a tip that violent demonstrators were hiding in the school.

The summit was marred by violence. A 23-year-old Italian protester was shot dead by police, more than 200 were injured and more than 300 people were arrested.

In October, a policeman was convicted of clubbing a teenage demontrator in the face and ordered to serve 20 months in prison.
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