Sicily

Mount Etna eruption halts flights to Sicily’s Catania airport

ROME (Reuters) - Flights serving the eastern Sicilian city of Catania were halted on Sunday after an eruption from nearby Mount Etna spewed volcanic ash onto its runways, airport authorities…

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Mild earthquake rattles Catania, Sicily

An earthquake of magnitude 3.2 was registered at 3:22 am in north-eastern Sicily, in the province of Catania. According to data from the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (Ingv),…

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EU ready to cover half of Messina Bridge study cost

The EU is ready to cover half of the cost of studies into the Messina Bridge project, Italy's transport ministry (MIT) said Wednesday. Brussels is ready to cover 50 per…

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Sicily Governor says island ‘swamped’ by migrant landings; Tension at Lampedusa hotspot

Sicily Governor Renato Schifani on Monday denounced the emergency situation on the island region, saying in the last month it has been "swamped" by the arrival of migrants and refugees…

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Italian police seize 2 tonnes of cocaine off the coast of Sicily

Finance police on Monday seized two tonnes of cocaine found floating off the east coast of Sicily.The drug, with an estimated market value of over 400 million euros, was wrapped…

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Italy’s planned bridge to Sicily sees costs ballooning

ROME, (Reuters) - A project to build a bridge connecting the Italian mainland to the island of Sicily will cost as much as 14.6 billion euros ($16.14 billion), a Treasury…

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Von der Leyen in Sicily: European solution on migrants possible

A European solution on migrants is possible, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said at the university of Palermo Thursday. "We must fight smugglers and traffickers, dialogue with partner…

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Photo Story: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Sicily

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday evening pays homage to judge Giovanni Falcone, his wife Francesca Morvillo and the escort agents murdered by the mafia in 1992,…

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Thunderstorms, gales whip eastern Sicily

Thunderstorms and gales have been whipping eastern Sicily since Wednesday night causing widespread flooding, local sources said. Mayors have told citizens not to go out unless it is strictly necessary…

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Italian authorities issue weather red alert for Sicily

A weather red alert will be in force in eastern Sicily on Thursday, the Italian civil protection agency said. Eastern Sicilian areas, in particular, will be at risk of flooding…

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Last migrants held up on charity ship allowed ashore in Italy

ROME (Reuters) - Thirty-five migrants who were held up on a rescue ship have been allowed ashore in Sicily, ending a stand-off between the German charity that runs the vessel…

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Dog owners in Sicily must now wash away pets’ urine as well

As well as picking up their pets' excrement, dog owners in Sicily will now have to wash away their urine under a regional law approved by the Sicilian Assembly (ARS)…

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Big police crackdown on Mafia clans in Sicily

Italian police on Thursday made 56 arrests in a crackdown on the prominent Santapaola-Ercolano clan in eastern Sicily.Some of the men arrested belonged to another clan, the Nardos from Lentini.The…

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UPDATED: Tragic shooting in Sicily as two children among four shot dead in Licata

Two children aged 11 and 15 were among four people shot dead in the Sicilian town of Licata on Wednesday as a man exterminated his brother's family. Angelo Tardino, 48,…

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Photo Story: Sicily’s iconic Scala dei Turchi defaced

The defaced Scala dei Turchi (Stair of the Turks) in Realmonte, Sicily, Italy. The famed white marl cliffs were stained with a mixture of water and red plaster powder on…

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UPDATED: Rescuers pull bodies from rubble after explosion in Sicily kills 7

RAVANUSA, Italy, Dec 13 (Reuters) - Rescuers were pulling out bodies on Monday from the rubble of houses destroyed by a suspected gas explosion on Saturday in the Sicilian town…

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Whirlwind kills man as flash floods hit Sicily

PALERMO, Sicily, Nov 17 (Reuters) - A whirlwind killed a man in southern Sicily and damaged properties on Wednesday, while heavy rains flooded streets and forced authorities to shut schools.…

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Photo Story: Aftermath of the storm that hit Sciacca, Sicily, Italy

A collapsed retaining wall near two buildings caused by the abundant rains that fell in the province of Agrigento in Sciacca, Italy, 11 November 2021. Agrigento Prefect Maria Rita Cocciufa…

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Bad weather causes damage and flooding in Sicily

Firefighters and civil protection volunteers rescued motorists and residents trapped by the floods after another massive storm hit Sicily. Situation was considered at risk and serious between Sciacca, Menfi, Mazara…

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Fierce storm turns squares into lakes in southern Italy

A powerful cyclonic storm hit the southern Italian island of Sicily on Tuesday causing widespread flooding around the city of Catania, turning streets and squares into rivers and lakes and…

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VIDEO: At least one person killed after Mediterranean hurricane batters Sicily

Fierce storms battered southern Italy for a second day on Monday, killing at least one person, triggering landslides and leaving roads and fields flooded, police said. The body of a…

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Italian Police break up gang that enslaved Bulgarian prostitutes in Sicily

Police in the Sicilian city of Catania said Tuesday that they had broke up a gang that effectively enslaved young women recruited in Bulgaria, forcing them into prostitution and paying…

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Covid risk increasing in Sicily and Sardinia

Sicily and Sardinia risk turning from low COVID risk white to moderate risk yellow after the two island regions reported ICU and hospital admissions over the thresholds of 10% and…

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Sicily reports spike in Covid-19 admissions

Sicily has passed the critical COVID threshold for both ICU occupancy and general ward admissions, the AGENAS health agency said Wednesday. The ICU occupancy by COVID patients has risen 1%…

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Malta: Ferry to Augusta delayed due to legal challenge

The launch of the ferry service to Augusta will be delayed due to last-minute legal challenge. The service, which was scheduled to start on Friday, is facing a last-minute legal…

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UPDATED: Firemen fight wildfires in Sicilian town of Catania

Firemen in Italy said on Saturday they were battling for a second straight day wildfires in Sicily that reached the town of Catania, forcing people to leave their homes and…

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Photo Story: Wildfires in Sicily

A handout photo made available by Vigili del Fuoco (VVF), the Italian National Fire Brigade, shows VVF members conducting extinguishing operations of a forest fire affecting an area between Piana…

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Storm alert issued for Sicily

The Italian Civil Protection is on alert after a storm warning was issued. The bad weather is expected to prevail over Central and Southern Italy including Sicily on Sunday. The…

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Italy reports 13 coronavirus deaths on Saturday, 3,121 new cases

Italy reported 13 coronavirus-related deaths on Saturday against 11 the day before, the health ministry said, while the daily tally of new infections rose to 3,121 from 2,898. Italy has…

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PN elects Exco, Giglio, Julie Zahra among new faces / Malta News Briefing – Saturday 17 July 2021

Updated 1722 PN elects exco, Giglio, Julie Zahra among new faces Lawyer Joe Giglio received the highest number of votes in the election for the PN's Executive Committee. He is…

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Franco Battiato dies aged 76

The Italian singer-songwriter, composer and filmmaker Franco Battiato has died in Sicily aged 76. Battiato died at his home in Milo where he retired in 2019. Born in 1945, the…

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Italian fishing boat involved in Libyan shootout docks in Sicily

The Sicilian fishing boats involved earlier this week in a shootout with Libyan patrol boats, injuring the captain of one of the Italian vessels, docked in the Sicilian port of…

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Update – Chinese rocket lands in Indian Ocean

UPDATE - Remnants of China’s biggest rocket landed in the Indian Ocean on Sunday, with most of its components destroyed upon re-entry into the atmosphere, ending days of speculation over where the debris would hit but drawing…

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3.3 Earthquake registered in the province of Catania, Sicily

An earthquake was felt around 1411h (local time) in Sicily. The earthquake was particularly felt in the province of Catania and the villages near Etna volcano. According to preliminary data…

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Fear of severe side effects upsets Sicily’s COVID vaccination plans

Sicily will start offering COVID-19 vaccines to people over 50 to speed up its inoculation programme which is being hampered by a reluctant older population who fear potentially severe side…

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First trip abroad for Italian PM Draghi will be Libya

talian Prime Minister Mario Draghi will visit Libya on Tuesday, according to Italian news agency Nova. The trip will mark the first international travel for Draghi since assuming office last…

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300 parish churches in Sicily become vaccination centres

Covid-19 vaccinations started to be administered in the 300 parishes of Sicily. There are 5,867 citizens, aged 69 to 79, who have booked their vaccination following an initiative based on…

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Scandal hits Sicilian authorities on COVID-19 data rigging allegations

3Sicily's regional health counsellor resigned on Tuesday after being placed under investigation suspected of sending rigged COVID-19 data to national authorities to avoid tough lockdown restrictions for the southern Italian region.…

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Photo Story: Spring in Sicily

A general view of the village of Gangi, Sicily, Italy, on the eve of the first day of spring with sun. Photo: EPA-EFE/GIOVANNI FRANCO

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Flurry of seismic activity around Etna in Sicily

A seismic swarm of at least 16 tremors, with a magnitude between 1.1 and 2.8, was recorded on Etna from 5.34 to 11.34 on Sunday by the National Institute of…

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Italy bans a different AstraZeneca batch following two deaths in Sicily: reports

ROME (Reuters/ANSA) - Italian health authorities have ordered the withdrawal of a batch of AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine following the deaths of two men in Sicily who had recently been inoculated,…

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Etna latest eruptions covers nearby villages in ash

People look towards Mount Etna volcano while the date was sketched into the ashes on the central squrae in Zafferana Etnea near Catania, Sicily, Italy. A strong rain of lava…

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Malta’s seismic research centre registers 3.6 magnitude earthquake off Sicily

Malta’s seismic research centre has registered a 3.6 magnitude earthquake which occurred off Sicily on Saturday evening. The earthquake took place at 18.54 GMT. No reports of damages or injuries…

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Updated – 3.2 earthquake strikes northern Sicily

As 3.2 earthquake has been registered in the city of Nicosia close to Enna in Northern Sicily. The earthquake was registered at 1738h local time. The earthquake was registered by…

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4.4 tremor strikes off Sicily, felt in Malta – Update

A 4.4 earthquake was registered in southern Sicily late Tuesday evening. The epicenter was in the sea in front of the Ragusano coast, in Marina di Acate, at a depth…

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Pope decrees Italian judge murdered by Mafia can be beatified

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis decreed on Tuesday that Italian judge Rosario Livatino, who was killed by the Mafia in Sicily in 1990, was a martyr for the faith…

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Elderly people mocked and mistreated in Catania nursing home

Italian police are investigating a serious case of mistreatment of elderly residing in the Villa San Camillo retirement home in Aci Sant'Antonio. According to preliminary investigations, the persons were left…

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Series of earth tremors rock Enna in Sicily

A series of earth tremors were recorded in Sicily, in the province of Enna according to the Italian National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (Ingv) between Saturday night and Sunday…

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Fake death insurance fraud leads to six arrests in Palermo

Italian police on Wednesday arrested six people in Palermo on charges of filing bogus life insurance claims after falsifying documents to show that claimants were dead, when they were not.…

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Italian coast-guard official dies while saving two boys at sea in Milazzo, Sicily

The lifeless body of Aurelio Visalli, 40, an officer of the Port Authority of Milazzo, who drowned after saving two young men, was found at sea by his colleagues on…

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Big wedding in Sicily fuels coronavirus spread

The Sicilian town of Corleone has ordered schools closed and a limited lockdown after a spate of coronavirus infections were tied to a big wedding there last week. The city…

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Viviana Parisi and Gioele case confirmed as a murder-suicide by scientific police

Viviana Parisi killed her four-year-old son Gioele and after climbing an electricity pylon, threw herself into the void, from a height of 15 meters. The Italian scientific police section has…

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Viviana neither killed her self nor my son – Husband

The husband of a 43-year-old DJ found dead near Messina after a car crash with her four-year-old son said Friday she had not killed herself or the boy. This was…

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Italian woman who returned to Palermo from Malta with Covid-19 in serious condition

The coronavirus pandemic in Malta continues to dominate the Italian headlines as Italian media reported that a woman who returned to Palermo from Malta is in serious condition in intensive…

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Search for missing 4-yr-old son of dead woman continues in Sicily

Rescue workers on Wednesday were continuing for the ninth consecutive day a huge search for the missing four-year-old son of a woman who was found dead in countryside in Sicily…

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Mystery on death of a mother and disappearance of son in Sicily

The searches of Gioele, 4 years old, the son of Viviana Parisi, 43 years old, the DJ found dead in Caronia, who according to investigators was with her in the…

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Sicily confirmed as new the starting point for Giro D’ Italia

Sicily has been confirmed as the replacement start for this year’s Giro d’Italia, after initial plans to begin the race in Hungary were scrapped due to the coronavirus pandemic. Hungary’s capital…

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