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10 August 2019An Iraqi citizen requesting international protection, in a state of agitation, threatened to set himself on fire with a lighter in Piazza Pio XII, right in front of the colonnade of San Pietro. According to investigative sources, the man uttered disconnected phrases including Allah akbar.

The Iraqi, dressed in a dark shirt and trousers and who had neither backpacks nor bottles in his hand, was immediately blocked by police officers on duty in front of the Vatican and taken to the police station for investigations.

The phases of the threat and the subsequent arrest of the man lasted in all less than two minutes: the uniformed policemen kept him constantly under control to prevent him from performing unintentional gestures while two plainclothes officers immobilized him without creating moments of tension between tourists and pilgrims.