Italy detains 174 people in anti-terror sweep

ROME - Police have raided scores of homes and detained 174 people across Italy in a sweeping anti-terrorism crackdown on suspected Islamic militants.

"The operation has been prepared for some time and confirms Italy has never lowered its guard in the face of terrorist risks," Interior Minister Giuseppe Pisanu told journalists.

The crackdown, involving 201 search warrants from Milan to Naples, follows last week's deadly attacks in London and comes a day after Pisanu warned that terrorism was "knocking on Italy's door" and urged parliament to strengthen security laws to prevent an attack.

"I'm not saying that we have seized terrorists. It's a preventative operation in high-risk environments," Pisanu said before the announcement of detentions.

The ministry said those detained were not under formal arrest, but were among 423 people being checked out. It said some of the detainees were being questioned over their legal status in Italy.

No further details were immediately available.

The search warrants were issued to look for illegal arms and explosives, a spokesman for the ministry's public security department said.

"About 200 search warrants are currently being carried out," said the spokesman, who did not want to be named. "They are related to controlling radical Islam throughout the country."

Police sources said they were investigating a wide range of crimes, from falsifying documents to terrorism.

Raids were carried out in a number of cities across Italy, but investigations were focused on Milan, Rome, Turin and Naples, Interior Ministry sources said.

Also on Wednesday, an Italian judge convicted two Islamic militants on terrorism charges in a case related to a plot to attack a Milan subway station and a church in the northern city of Cremona in 2002.

On Tuesday, Pisanu called for beefed-up controls at Italy's borders and an extension of the period a suspect can be detained for identification from 12 to 24 hours, among other measures.

Last Thursday's bombings of three underground stations and a bus in London killed at least 52 people and wounded 700.

Italy has been on edge since the blasts and has had to deal with a series of bomb threats. In recent days, Rome has evacuated a terminal at its international airport, a street near the interior minister's home and the offices of a major bank.

Britain and Spain, which have suffered major attacks, both supported the US-led war in Iraq, stirring fears that Italy and other US allies could be targeted too.

- REUTERS