Tag Archives: Italy

The Wall Street Journal reports: Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte is set to resign on Tuesday, his office said, as Europe’s underlying problems of economic stagnation and political fragmentation start to reassert themselves amid the gruelling pandemic. The fall of Italy’s government, in office for just 17 months, is a symptom of the continuing fissures in Italian and European politics. …

ABC News reports: Pope Francis will celebrate Midnight Mass earlier than usual to comply with Italy’s anti-coronavirus curfew and will deliver his Christmas and New Year’s blessings in ways that aim to prevent crowds from forming. The Vatican on Thursday released the pope’s COVID-19 Christmas liturgical schedule. It said the pope’s Dec. 24 Mass — which for years hasn’t been …

Reuters reports: Rome’s Fiumicino airport will run COVID-tested flights to and from the United States operated by Delta Air Lines and Alitalia, it said on Thursday, adding it will be the first airport in Europe to offer the service on transatlantic flights. From December, passengers flying between Rome and some U.S. destinations can be tested for the coronavirus 48 hours …

The Washington Post reports: Italy became the latest European country to announce new restrictions to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus on Sunday as countries across the continent continue to report surging infections. Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced the new restrictions as the country reported a record 21,273 cases on Sunday. Beginning Monday, restaurants and bars will be …

Reuters reports: Italy on Wednesday made it mandatory to wear face masks outdoors nationwide in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus, as new infections jumped to the highest daily tally since April. The decree was approved at a cabinet meeting after a steady increase in cases over the last two months. It will probably be effective from …

Bloomberg reports: Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has tested positive for the coronavirus and is continuing to work in isolation at his home near Milan, his spokeswoman said. The leader of the Forza Italia party will continue to support candidates of his group and of the center-right bloc with daily media interviews, the spokeswoman said. At 83, Berlusconi falls …

The Hollywood Reporter reports: Ennio Morricone, the Oscar winner whose haunting, inventive scores expertly accentuated the simmering, dialogue-free tension of the spaghetti Westerns directed by Sergio Leone, has died. He was 91. The Italian composer, who scored more than 500 films — seven for his countryman Leone after they had met as kids in elementary school — died in Rome …

The Christian Post reports: Two days after bishops in Italy’s Roman Catholic Church complained that government officials did not include the resumption of in-person masses as part of a reopening plan for the country starting May 4, Pope Francis on Tuesday urged “prudence and obedience” to prevent the coronavirus from surging in the country again. Speaking to the faithful during …

Reuters reports: The gloom over Italy darkened Friday as the country reported nearly 1,000 new deaths, its worst single-day toll in an accelerating coronavirus pandemic that has brought the world to a standstill. Grim-faced Italian officials in Rome announced 969 new deaths at a daily briefing while, not far away and at the same time, Pope Francis held a stirring …

Sky News reports: Italy has recorded 368 new coronavirus deaths – its largest number of fatalities in a day since the start of the outbreak. A total of 1,809 people with COVID-19 have now died in the country, which is the hardest-hit by the virus in Europe, as the number of cases rose to more than 24,700. It comes after …

The Metro reports: Authorities in Italy have announced that all stores except pharmacies and food outlets will close in response to the country’s coronavirus outbreak. So-far, 827 people have died from Covid-19 inside Italy, whereas 12,462 have been infected with the virus in the country. Today Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte thanked the public for cooperating with the already unprecedented travel …

Yahoo News reports: St. Peter’s Square and St. Peter’s Basilica have been closed to tourists and guided groups because of coronavirus but individual members of the faithful can enter the basilica to pray, the Vatican said on Tuesday.  A statement said the Vatican would also be closing its post office in the square, which draws many tourists, as well as …

Yahoo News reports: Thousands of people rushed to flee Northern Italy after plans by the government for a 16-million-person quarantine were leaked to the media ahead of time. Italy on Sunday shut down its Northern Lombardy region, which includes Milan, and 14 nearby provinces, a lockdown that is due to last until at least April 3. In Italy’s south dozens …

The BBC reports: Italy is extending its strict coronavirus quarantine measures, which include a ban on public gatherings, to the entire country. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said that people would only be permitted to travel for work or family emergencies. He said the measures, which come into effect on Tuesday, were to defend the most fragile members of society. Italy’s …

Reuters reports: Italy ordered a virtual lockdown across much of its wealthy north, including the financial capital Milan, in a drastic new attempt to try to contain a outbreak of coronavirus that saw the number of deaths leap again sharply on Sunday. The unprecedented restrictions, which aim to limit gatherings and curb movement, will impact some 16 million people and …

The New York Post reports: The number of coronavirus cases in Italy leaped by more than 1,200 Saturday, prompting the government to move to lock down the entire northern region of Lombardy, and 11 nearby provinces, according to reports. Italy reported 5,883 cases on Saturday, and 233 deaths. The situation is so dire that the Italian government moved to put …

The Daily Beast reports: The Vatican has closed its health care facilities after treating a patient who tested positive for the coronavirus, according to a memo sent to the Vatican press corps Friday morning. The Vatican emergency room remains open. The Vatican clinic serves around 1,000 people who live inside Vatican City, including Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis, countless …

Bloomberg News reports: Italy will shut down schools across the country until mid-March to curb the spread of the coronavirus epidemic, newswire Ansa reported. The closure, which starts Thursday, is aimed at tackling the outbreak of the highly contagious disease, which has killed 79 people in the country and crippled the rich northern regions. As many as 8.7 million children …

Reuters reports: Pope Francis, who canceled a Lent retreat for the first time in his papacy because he is suffering from a cold, has tested negative for coronavirus, the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero reported on Tuesday. Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said he had no immediate comment on the report. The 83-year-old Roman Catholic leader, who had part of one lung …

Agence France-Presse reports: More than 50,000 people are locked down in about a dozen Italian villages where the most deaths and infections have been recorded. Schools, shops and offices are closed and armed police are threatening to arrest and detain anyone who attempts to leave the quarantine zone. Panic is taking hold in the nearby city of Milan, the engine …