Politicians are calling for urgent action, including the deployment of the military, after a Nigerian migrant attacked two police officers with a huge axe in central Padua early on Monday.

The 32-year-old migrant, who should have been deported from Italy, was arrested and is now being treated in hospital after being shot in the leg by police officers trying to stop him. The clash erupted at around 4 am when residents reported a raging man wielding an axe. Police tried for nearly an hour to disarm the migrant with Tasers and pepper spray, but were unsuccessful. At around 5 am, the man attacked the officers, forcing one of them to fire his gun in self-defence.

The attacker, who narrowly missed hitting one police officer and pinned another against the wall, is charged with attempted double murder, the Italian Il Giornale reported.

The incident has reignited criticism of public security in Padua. Elisa Cavinato, regional councillor for the ruling Lega party, described the city as resembling the „Wild West” in some areas, especially at night, and called for military intervention.

Luca Zaia, president of the Veneto region, praised the professionalism and composure of the police under pressure, but stressed that the attack was „extremely serious, especially considering that the attacker already had a number of complaints against him for threats and resistance”. Police unions have repeatedly warned in recent months that such attacks are becoming more frequent and severe. Police officers are often left without adequate tools to tackle escalating violence, said Maurizio Ferrara, general secretary of Veneto’s FSP police union.

The same applies to public transport workers in recent months, following several incidents on Italian railways. Last month, two North African migrants stabbed a conductor from Genoa during a routine ticket check.

Mirco Pesavento, regional secretary of the SAP police union, also sounded the alarm. He referred to a violent incident that also took place in Padua, when police were surrounded by a gang of 50 migrants and then attacked and injured. „The situations that patrols face are becoming increasingly dangerous,” he warned, calling on the government to speed up the expulsion of undocumented illegal migrants.