Thousands of protesters and strikers calling for solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza took to the streets in Milan, Italy on Monday and some stormed the city's central train station where protestors clashed with police.

Tension escalated when dozens of protesters dressed in black and armed with batons tried to smash the main entrance of Milan's central train station, throwing smoke bombs, bottles and stones at police, who responded with pepper spray.

Italy’s grassroots unions, which represent hundreds of thousands of people ranging from schoolteachers to metalworkers, called for a 24-hour general strike in both public and private sectors, including public transportation, trains, schools and ports.

Unions and student organizations denounced “the inertia of the Italian and EU governments.”

The Italian government headed by conservative Premier Giorgia Meloni, a close ally of Israel in the EU, has more recently adopted a harsher tone on Israeli policies as domestic pressure mounted over the war.

Italy, however, is not among the countries, including France, that will formally recognize a Palestinian state at this week’s U.N. General Assembly.

The strike caused disruption across the country, with long delays for national trains and limited public transport in major cities including Rome and Milan.