http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/810353C4-F203-43C5-B88B-D1317064F9B8.htm
Fortress Rome greets Bush
Friday 04 June 2004, 13:15 Makka Time, 10:15 GMT
Not welcome: Bush on arrival in Rome
Related:
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Police have turned Rome into a fortress as anti-war protesters are pledging to give US President George Bush a heated reception during his 36-hour visit.
Carabinieri police on Friday saturated the historic city centre, with heavy concentrations of the paramilitary force along the main thoroughfares and piazzas, as well as at bridges, rail stations and airports. Helicopters droned overhead.
The interior ministry has mobilised some 10,000 security forces. Traffic in the city centre was notably lighter than normal as many residents stayed away from possible flashpoints. The US State Department on Thursday issued a warning to American citizens living in Italy to avoid crowds.
Protestors were on the streets from early morning, but the main demonstration organised by the Communists and Greens was scheduled for mid-afternoon in central Rome.
'Not welcome'
"We're here to tell Bush he's really not welcome, but we want to say it with a peaceful demonstration," a youth with a megaphone said as the first marchers, many waving multicoloured peace flags, took to the streets in eastern Rome.
Silvio Berlusconi supports Bush's
invasion of Iraq
Closer to the centre, a group of young people set tyres ablaze on a bridge over the Tiber river.
Around 1000 demonstrators arrived in Rome by train from Milan to join the street protests, rail authorities said.
Many office and apartment windows in the city centre have been draped with the rainbow-coloured peace flags in a polite message to Bush over his Iraq policy, which is supported by Italian Pime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
The main centre-left opposition parties, who oppose the visit,
said however they would not take part in demonstrations out of respect for the US soldiers who died in the liberation of Rome, the commemoration of which is the official reason for the president's visit.
He was due to attend a wreath-laying ceremony in the afternoon at the Ardeatine Caves outside Rome, the site of one of Italy's worst massacres of civilians at the hands of the Nazis.
Date with the Pope
Bush and his wife Laura, who arrived at Rome's Ciampino airport shortly after midnight, spent the night at the US ambassador Mel Sembler's heavily guarded residence in the leafy Parioli suburb of the city. Nearby roads were closed to traffic.
"The president did make an adjustment so he could meet with the Holy Father"
White House official
The Bush motorcade was set to roll at 11 am (09:00 GMT) with a visit to Italian counterpart Carlo Azeglio Ciampi at the Quirinale Palace his first stop.
The highlight of the visit, an audience with Pope John Paul II to discuss their differences over Bush's Iraq policy, was scheduled for noon.
It is their third meeting, and the first since Bush went to war in Iraq, despite the pope's strong opposition.
'Differences'
Bush is to present the 84-year-old pontiff with the Congressional Medal of Honour, his country's highest civilian honour, a Vatican spokesman said.
"Obviously, there have been differences from time to time on
various issues. But the Holy Father is someone to whom everyone looks on issues like the human condition," said a senior US official aboard Air Force One.
Bush is to present the pontiff with
the Congressional Medal of Honour
The White House official confirmed reports that the president had been forced to bring forward his meeting with John Paul II, who begins a papal visit to Switzerland early on Saturday.
Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who said on Thursday he feared anti-war protests could turn violent, is to host Bush at a gala dinner on Friday evening.
