Italy

“I’m not a puppet” – Italian PM Giuseppe Conte at European Parliament

italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte insisted on Tuesday that he was not "a puppet" of his deputies, as he responded to a barrage of criticism from leading EU politicians. Following…

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Sanremo winner Mahmood confirms he’ll represent Italy during Eurovision

After first saying he will represent Italy in Eurovision 2019, then getting second thoughts over it, Sanremo 2019 winner Mahmood has now officially confirmed that he will represent Italy in…

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Boat with 150 people on board in distress rescued and people taken back to Libya – Salvini

Update: In a Facebook post, Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said that the boat in distress had been rescued and was taken back to the Libyan port, from where…

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Salvini hints at seizing control of Italian Central Bank’s gold reserves

Matteo Salvini has raised the possibility of wresting control of Italy’s sizeable gold reserves away from the country’s central bank in the latest in a series of threats to the…

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Early results show victory for right wing coalition (Lega/Fratelli d’Italia and Forza Italia) as Movimento 5 Stelle plunges in Abruzzo local elections

A coalition of right-wing Italian parties looked set to win a regional election in Abruzzo Sunday, which pit the country's ruling parties against one another, according to early projections. The right-wing…

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Protests in Rome demanding more pro-growth measures from Government

Thousands of people attended a protest in Rome, demanding the government more measures pro economic growth. Reports claimed this was the biggest in years. No violent incidents were reported at…

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Di Maio and Salvini promise to replace top officials of Italian Central Bank for failing to prevent banking scandals

Italy’s government leaders promised to replace top officials at the country’s central bank, who they said must pay for failing to prevent a spate of banking scandals in which thousands…

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Air France is pulling out from Alitalia rescue deal for political reasons – Reports

Air France is pulling out of a deal that would save struggling Italian airline Alitalia for “political reasons”, Italian media reports. The Ferrovie dello Statto (FS) rail group, which is…

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Di Maio’s meeting with French protest leaders is a serious intrusion – Yellow Vest movement founder

One of the founders of the Yellow Vest movement has called the meeting between Italy’s deputy Prime Minister, Luigi Di Maio, and other protest leaders a serious intrusion. This comes…

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Genoa’s bridge reconstruction a symbol of Italy’s revival

Heavy machinery began winching down a huge slab of concrete in the northern Italian city of Genoa on Friday to clear the way for a new bridge to be built…

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Salvini says he would be happy to meet Macron to discuss recent tensions between Italy and France

French President Emmanuel Macron’s government recalled its ambassador to Rome on Thursday in a move unprecedented since World War Two, saying it was fed up with “repeated, baseless” attacks by…

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Italo-French relations under further stress as Di Maio meets Yellow Vest movement leaders

Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio said he met leaders of France’s “yellow vest” anti-government movement on Tuesday, an encounter likely to further test already strained bilateral relations. Di…

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Corporate Dispatch Morning Briefing – Tuesday

Good morning Your morning briefing for Tuesday includes the newspaper's front page stories' review, the latest headlines from around the world, and reference to some insight on the situation in…

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Italy’s government coalition division blocked joint EU position on Guaido

Italy on Monday blocked a joint EU position to recognize Venezuela’s opposition leader Juan Guaido as interim president, diplomatic sources said, with the government in Rome deeply divided over the…

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Eight die in Italy after a series of avalanches hit the skiing resorts

British and French skiers are among eight people found dead after an avalanche near the Italian resort of Courmayeur on Monday. Two people from the UK and two from France…

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Italy’s high-speed rail link with France ‘has no future’ – Di Maio

Italy’s high-speed rail link with France “has no future”, Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio said on Saturday, despite his fellow deputy premier in the coalition government saying the line…

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Italy’s coastguard blocks Sea Watch 3 in Catania’s port

Italy’s coastguard on Friday blocked the Sea-Watch 3 migrant rescue ship in the port of Catania citing safety and environmental concerns, delaying the vessel’s plans to return to patrolling the…

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Salvini on the recession : I do not care much to talk about data fixed the Istat

"There will be no government crisis and I will not pose a problem: I am counting on honoring the government contract with Di Maio, who is a serious person. The…

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2.5 tonnes cocaine seized in Genoa – Largest drug haul in 25 years

Police in Italy have seized about 2.5 tonnes of cocaine in two shipments - which add up to the largest drug haul found in the country in 25 years. On…

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Persons on board SeaWatch disembark in Catania

The SeaWatch with the 47 rescued persons on board has docked in the Sicilian port of Catania after a two-week wait with the crew fearing legal action as Italy's far-right…

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Italy falls into technical recession

Italy has fallen into recession after its economy shrank by 0.2 per cent in the final three months of 2018, its second successive quarter of contraction. The FT reports that…

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Hungary will not join Italy’s eurosceptic alliance

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s ruling Fidesz party will not join a eurosceptic alliance spearheaded by Italy in the run-up to European Parliament elections despite their common hard line on…

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Southern EU Countries MED7 meet in Cyprus Summit

Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat is in Cyprus today for the MED7 Southern EU Countries' Summit, where leaders from the host country, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece have just…

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Sea Watch lodge urgent complaint against Italy with European Court for Human Rights

Sea Watch lodged an urgent complaint against Italy with the European Court for Human Rights (ECHR) on Monday after a ship it runs, the Sea Watch 3, was denied port…

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Macron dismisses verbal attacks by Italian deputy prime ministers as ‘insignficant’

French President Emmanuel Macron dismissed as insignificant the recent verbal attacks by Italy's two deputy prime ministers, saying his only counterpart was Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte. Matteo Salvini of the…

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Four dead, two injured as tourist plane and helicopter collide in mid-air over Alps (Updated)

Four people died and two were injured after a tourist plane and a helicopter collided in mid-air over the Italian Alps. The aircraft were flying over a glacier in the northwestern region…

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Sea Watch anchors close to Syracuse after being allowed in Italian waters for safety

The Sea Watch has entered Italian territorial waters and is anchored a mile from the coast of Syracuse . The coastguard reported that admission was allowed due to bad weather. The objective is to guarantee the safety of the 47 migrants…

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Salvini insists that Italy’s ports were closed as SeaWatch 3 heads to Italy’s shores with 47 persons on board

Italy's Interior Minister Matteo Salvini on Thursday insisted the country's ports were closed to migrants, as a ship carrying 47 people rescued at sea headed for Sicily in deteriorating weather.…

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Salvini should face trial over Diciotti case – Court

A special tribunal has recommended that Interior Minister Matteo Salvini face trial for refusing to let 150 migrants disembark last year from a rescue ship docked in Sicily, the far-right…

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Italy ordered to pay Amanda Knox after ECHR found country guilty of breaching her rights when she spent years in prison for a murder of which she was later acquitted

Italy has been ordered to pay €18,400 (£16,000) to US citizen Amanda Knox, who spent years in prison for a murder of which she was later acquitted. Ms Knox's long-running…

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France summons Italian ambassador after Di Maio accuses France of exploiting Africa and fuelling migration

France has summoned Italy's ambassador after the Italian deputy prime minister accused the French of exploiting Africa and fuelling migration. On Sunday, Luigi di Maio called on the European Union…

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Is another tragedy in the making in the Mediterranean Sea?

While the controversies about the death of the 117 migrants who disappeared in the Mediterranean waters in front of the Libyan coast between Friday and Saturday still going on, another…

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Berlusconi announces he will contest MEP elections, 25 years since his entrance in the political sphere

Almost 25 years since his 'entrance' in the political fray, the Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi announced he will run in the European Parliament election in May. “At my…

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Person who was meant to be repatriated and escaped from plane captured

UPDATE: The thirty year old Egyptian citizen who yesterday escaped from a repatriation flight has been captured in the night. The Ministry for Interior announced. Yesterday: Chaos at Malpensa airport: all…

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Europe risks collapsing unless common position on migrants is found – Giuseppe Conte

Premier Giuseppe Conte said Monday that the European Union risks collapsing unless if finds a common position on migrants. "If we continue to stall without a shared path, we risk…

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4.8 earthquake felt in North Italy

A strong earthquake shook North Italy at 00:04 (local time). The tremor, according to official INGV data, was of magnitude 4.8 with epicenter in the Adriatic Sea, just off the…

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Cesare Battisti arrives in Italy

Former far-left militant Cesare Battisti, escorted by Italian police, disembarks from a plane after arriving at Rome's Ciampino airport, Italy, 14 January 2019. Cesare Battisti, 64, a former member of…

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Mara Vernier and Giampiero Galeazzi share the stage in emotional comeback

They talked about their careers, their happy moments together that marked an era of Italian television. After the images and the memories, Mara Venier dedicated to Giampiero Galeazzi, her guest…

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The ‘Sea Watch’ migrants will only come to Italy, once the others are relocated to Europe – Salvini

The Sea Watch migrants, as far as I am concerned, will arrive in Italy after the migrants who have to be relocated to Europe have left. This was stated by…

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100 years ago, Giulio Andreotti was born

Giulio Andreotti was born in 1919. The senator for life was seven times president of the Council and more than twenty times minister - holder of the secrets and the…

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7 years since the Costa Concordia cruise shipwreck

On January 13, 2012, the Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia ran aground and overturned after striking an underwater rock off Isola del Giglio, Tuscany, resulting in 32 deaths. The eight year old Costa Cruises vessel was…

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Left-wing Italian terrorist Cesare Battisti captured in Bolivia

Left-wing Italian terrorist Cesare Battisti, who was on the run from Brazilian authorities, has been captured in Bolivia, an adviser to President Jair Bolsonaro said Friday. Battisti, a founding member of far-left Italian…

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Sunday Morning Briefing and News Paper Review

Good morning, Your morning briefing gives you a roundup of the main headlines from the world and the main stories reported in today's front pages of Malta's newspapers. Latest Headlines Left-wing…

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Circulation of ‘foreign licensed’ cars in Italy becomes limited through new Security decree aimed to curb tax evasion through foreign registrations of cars

The Safety Decree recently approved by the Italian government, and which came into force this month inserts a rule that, with some exceptions, prohibits those who live in Italy for…

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Renzi praises Maltese Prime Minister Muscat’s leadership in contrast with the lack of shown by the Italian governing triad

Former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi praised Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat while criticising the current Italian triad of Conte, Salvini, and Di Maio about the recent stand-off in the…

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“If by refusing ‘40’ persons we think we are solving the migration issue, we are reaching ridiculous levels” Claudio Baglioni – Salvini replies: “Focus on Singing”

Italian singer Claudio Baglioni said that with thousands of people who are currently migrating for various reasons, one can't think of solving the issue by refusing 40 persons. During the…

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Poland and Italy will be part of the new spring of Europe – Matteo Salvini

Italy’s far-right Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said on Wednesday he wants his country and Poland to join forces to reshape Europe in his quest for a euroskeptic alliance ahead…

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Deal reached brings end to saga of 49 people stranded off Maltese shores

An agreement on a deal has been reached which will bring to end the saga of a group of 49 long-suffering migrants disembarking in Malta from two NGO rescue ships…

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If Salvini keeps insisting in his stand on disembarkation of migrants, I’ll go for them with the plane, we made our point – Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte on Porta a Porta

We are urging Malta to disembark those people, Italy can exceptionally endure a few women and a few children with husbands. I do not believe that the line of government…

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France and Germany ready to take 100 persons from Malta – Malta insists for redistribution of the 249 migrants which disembarked in Malta in December – EU intensifies diplomatic efforts to solve impasse UPDATED with Maltese Government Position

Update: The government said it would be providing any assistance to the stranded vessels in case of an emergency, adding that any relocation agreement should include 249 migrants rescued by…

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Italy, Germany, France, Portugal, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Romania ready to take persons stranded off Malta, if Malta lets them in

Italy, Germany, France, Portugal, Luxembourg, the Netherland and Romania are reported to have expressed their commitment to take the people stranded off Malta in the diplomatic stand-off which is seeing…

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Conte commits Italy to take 15 migrants stranded off Malta

Corriere Della Sera reports that Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte declared Italy's intention to take 15 Migrants on board SeaWatch. He added that Italy won't be taking just women and…

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Pope makes a “heartfelt appeal to European leaders to show concrete solidarity”

Pope Francis urged European leaders on Sunday to stop bickering over the fate of 49 migrants stuck aboard two humanitarian rescue ships on the Mediterranean and to give them a…

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81 years ago ‘La Befana’ gave Adriano Celentano to Italy in via Gluck

Adriano Celentano turns 81. Celentano, an Italian composer, producer, comedian, actor, film director and TV host with popularity which spreads across generations and to countries where his works are seen…

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06

Jan

Nutella, Barilla, Moretti and Barolo – Salvini’s ingredients in a successful strategy to sell his common-man brand in an anti-elite era

Matteo Salvini likes spreading Nutella on his morning bread. He winds down with a bowl of Barilla pasta and a glass of Barolo wine. He heeds the words of wisdom…

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European illegal migration falls to lowest level in five years

The number of people caught trying to enter the EU illegally has fallen to its lowest level in five years, the bloc's border agency says. An estimated 150,000 illegal crossings…

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Maltese Government reacts to Di Maio’s comments

In a statement issued on Friday evening with reference to public statements made by Italian Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio with regard to the migrants on SeaWatch 3, the…

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