Italy's Naples struggles with violent "baby gangs"

ROME, Jan. 15 (Xinhua) -- Italian Interior Minister Marco Minniti will head to Naples on Tuesday after a rash of violent attacks by so-called "baby gangs" in the southern city prompted calls for the central government to step in, local media reported on Monday.

Among those calling for a strong sign from national law enforcement was Naples Mayor Luigi De Magistri, who told reporters in televised comments he was "happy the minister has decided to come to our city" over the issue.

"The response to these brutal attacks must come from...the state," said De Magistris, a former prosecutor, adding that juvenile delinquency must be made a priority, and prison sentences must be carried out.

The announcement that Minniti would attend a security summit in Naples came on the same day a 15-year-old boy named Arturo returned to school for the first time since he was stabbed almost to death by a teen gang in central Naples on Dec. 18.

Local paper Il Mattino di Napoli posted a video of a smiling Arturo, who survived life-threatening stab wounds to the neck and chest at the hands of complete strangers. He was surrounded by welcoming fellow students, teachers, and journalists.

In the latest episode, a 16-year-old boy reported he was physically and verbally attacked by a group of unknown teens, who insulted him and broke his nose. The incident took place Sunday evening at a subway entrance in Naples.

In a separate incident on Saturday evening, a group of about 10 kids wielding chains beat up two students aged 14 and 15 in a park in the Naples-area industrial town of Pomigliano d'Arco. The victims suffered contusions to the face and abdomen and were robbed of a smartphone, according to police.

Two of the attackers -- aged 13 and 15 -- have been identified, ANSA news agency cited police as saying.

On Friday in Naples, a 15-year-old boy was beaten up by a teen gang so severely that his spleen had to be surgically removed.

The victim was attacked while waiting for a bus along with his two cousins by a group of at least 15 kids aged 14 to 17. Ten of them have been identified by police as being the sons of local criminals, RAI public broadcaster reported. Enditem