Those who are released continue to offend, and are sent back to the centre, some two or three times, while others ‘move’ their activity to another EU country.

The Cesare Beccaria Youth Detention Centre is located in the outskirts of Milan. A small institution that can hold up to 70 people, but is usually overcrowded, has been the focus of several articles in the Italian press recently after it was revealed that a staggering proportion—estimated to being seven out of ten, or even nine out of ten, according to the Catholic chaplain of the centre—of the 80 detainees are unaccompanied foreign minors. What is even more worrisome is that these youngsters (who become offenders at an ever younger age) are practically all Muslims, coming primarily from Egypt, Tunisia, and Morocco, who are barely educated and socialised, and who have grown into a ‘predatory,’ nomadic lifestyle.

According to Il Giornale, those held at the centre (all male) were arrested mainly for robberies, drug dealing and violent offences. As the chaplain, Father Claudio Burgio, put it, there has been a clear change in the “migration projects” of foreign youth from Muslim countries arriving in Italy. While earlier, most wanted to study, work, and integrate into Italian society, today these young males only care about making money in whatever way possible, “have no ethics and don’t care about the consequences” of their choices. They also have something else in common: a contempt for the West.

The chaplain also pointed out to the online outlet Vita that those who are released continue to offend, and are sent back to the centre, some two or three times, while others ‘move’ to another EU country like Spain or France and then either offend on their own or, more probably, as members of criminal gangs. And the pattern is the same in the detention facilities of all other major Northern Italian cities, he remarked.

But ‘simple’ criminality is not the only concern with regard to these foreign minors. The Italian authorities are aware that youth detention centres like the one in Milan are also ideal terrain for radicalisation. As Il Giornale points out, “all it takes is [for those not yet radicalised] to encounter a more confident and assertive ‘bro’ in prison to foment their resentment, and it’s easy for them to embrace extreme ideas and transform their religious faith into fanaticism.”

To address the issue, the detention centre, the Milan Diocese, the Juvenile Court, the Interior Ministry, and the Ministry of Justice have agreed that an imam should be appointed to the institution. Abdullah Tchina is 58 years old and was previously the imam of the Islamic community of Sesto San Giovanni. He seemed to be the ideal choice: a moderate figure who can help quell hatred and prevent fanaticism that leads to terrorist acts. Tchina will start work at Beccaria in September.

But the move has proved to be controversial, with many questioning whether it will be sufficient to prevent extremism “in a ghetto-like institution where two-thirds of inmates are Muslim.” Riccardo De Corato, a member of the governing Fratelli d’Italia party, has criticised the decision and will submit a written question to Minister of Justice Carlo Nordio, arguing that “the imam will make the situation worse.” By contrast, Chaplain Claudio Burgio is of the opinion that he will be a “crucial figure for young people separated from their families” and says the two of them will cooperate.

According to data from the Antigone association, there are 148 imams active in prisons, but not all officially accredited, as most are volunteers. However, the change at Beccaria could make this role official in other Italian juvenile detention facilities as well. Which, Il Giornale notes, raises the question: how can authorities avoid “enlisting figures who then degenerate into anti-Western proselytising?” An issue that must certainly be addressed.