It will not be Giorgia Meloni's government's financial maneuver that will be at the center of the strikes on November 28 and 29, 2025, called by a series of trade unions, but geopolitics. Greta Thunberg, now far removed from the environmental appeals that made her famous, will arrive in Italy not to talk about emissions as she once did, but to join the pro-Palestinian front. At her side will be Francesca Albanese, the controversial UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian Territories, a figure now better known for her invective against Israel than for her institutional reports. The image of the two women marching in the same Italian square—one a former symbol of the "green revolution," the other an emblem of openly partisan activism—is destined to become a perfect snapshot of the new course of global activism: ideological, polarized, and completely detached from its original themes.
Greta Thunberg, who in recent years has abandoned climate conferences to participate in pro-Palestinian demonstrations, has accused Israel of "genocide" and "crimes against humanity" in Gaza, going so far as to compare military operations to a "systematic destruction of the planet." These words marked a turning point in her journey: from "Fridays for Future" to "Fridays for Palestine."
At her side was Albanese, who has never hidden her radical views. Famous for her harsh statements against the Jewish state, she was recently sanctioned by the United States for "prejudice and incitement to hatred." The US State Department has restricted her participation in conferences and official meetings in the United States, accusing her of overstepping the limits of her mandate at the United Nations and spreading a narrative that "legitimizes violence against Israel."
On several occasions, the Italian rapporteur has called Israel "an apartheid state" and "a colonial regime that aims to wipe out the Palestinian people." She has accused Western countries of "moral and material complicity in war crimes" and has even called on European governments to "stop all military and scientific cooperation with Tel Aviv." These statements have caused irritation not only in Jerusalem, but also among UN diplomats, who see her as a divisive figure and a source of institutional embarrassment. Despite everything, Albanese continues to present himself as the voice of "universal human rights," ignoring the fact that his role requires neutrality and detachment. His presence on the streets, alongside a now politicized figure such as Greta Thunberg, consolidates an ideological alliance that has nothing to do with environmentalism or diplomacy.
The Italian marches on November 28 and 29, 2025, thus risk turning into a militant showcase, where causes overlap and become confused: climate, Palestine, anti-capitalism, hatred of the West. In the middle of it all is a young and disillusioned audience, attracted by simple slogans and symbols that are easy to share on social media. But why did the unions invite Greta Thunberg and Francesca Albanese to participate in the demonstrations on November 28 and 29? It is certainly not a random choice, but rather a response to a specific strategy that is more political than union-related. Firstly, the presence of two internationally recognized figures guarantees media visibility: the attention of newspapers and television stations, both Italian and foreign, transforms an ordinary strike into an event with global reach. It is a choice of communication, even before content.
Added to this is the desire to internationalize the protest, linking national issues—wages, precariousness, inequality—with global battles for the climate and against war. In this context, Thunberg becomes the symbol of the struggle against capitalism and the fossil fuel-based economic model, while Albanese represents the voice of denunciation against Israel and, more generally, of accusation against the West, which is considered jointly responsible for global injustices.
There is also a clear internal political message : their participation also serves to strengthen the opposition to the government, accused of siding with Israel and reducing the space for social dissent. In essence, their presence embodies a symbolic gesture of defiance towards the executive. Everything converges in a well-thought-out political and media calculation : to use two iconic figures, very different from each other but both functional to the narrative, to give the strike an international and anti-system dimension that it would otherwise have struggled to achieve. Many observers speak openly of the 'exploitation of Italian squares' by foreign figures seeking visibility. Italy, fertile ground for symbolic activism and the rhetoric of "global struggles," once again becomes the perfect stage for a protest that mixes defunct environmentalism and partisan geopolitics. Greta Thunberg and Francesca Albanese thus represent two sides of the same paradox : a young woman who has stopped talking about carbon dioxide and an obscure diplomat who speaks like an activist. Both are united by the certainty that they are right, but far from the reality of what they claim to defend. But the question for both remains the same : who is paying them to do all this?
