Thousands of protesters gathered in the suburbs of the central Italian town of L’Aquila July 10, as the G8 summit came to a close—the town itself being blocked off by thousands of riot police. “We do not want the G8 leaders to search for the ways to overcome the crisis that they started,” said Paolo Ferrero of the Communist Refoundation Party, adding, “We want the demands of the affected people to be considered in the restoration of L’Aquila.” Among the protesters were many local residents angered by the stalling of restoration work in L’Aquila, where nearly 300 died, 1,500 were injured and about 50,000 left homeless in April’s earthquake. (Ria Novosti, July 10)
At the summit, US President Barack Obama suggested that the G8 has outlived its usefulness. “To think we can somehow deal with some of these global challenges in the absence of major powers like China, India and Brazil seems to be wrong-headed,” Obama told reporters. (London Times, July 11)
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