Tag Archives: Italy

ITALY: All Stores But Grocers And Pharmacies To Close

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 …

Read More »

Vatican Closes St. Peter’s Square To Tour Groups

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 …

Read More »

ITALY: Thousands Fled Quarantine After Media Leak

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 …

Read More »

Italy Imposes Strict Quarantine Measures Nationwide

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 …

Read More »

Italy Locks Down Northern Region To Battle Virus

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 …

Read More »

Italy Moves To Lock Down Northern Region Over Virus

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 …

Read More »

Vatican City Reports Its First Case Of Coronavirus

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 …

Read More »

ITALY: All Schools To Be Closed To Curb Virus Spread

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 …

Read More »

ITALY: Pope Francis Tests Negative For Coronavirus

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 …

Read More »

Italy Grapples With Panic-Buying Amid Virus Spread

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 …

Read More »

Italy Locks Down Region In Coronavirus Outbreak

The New York Times reports: Health officials in Italy raced to contain the first major coronavirus outbreak in Europe, locking down more than 50,000 people in 10 towns in the northern Lombardy region, where a sizable cluster of coronavirus infections has emerged, and passing emergency measures that apply throughout the country. The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Italy has …

Read More »

ITALY: 6000 Held On Cruise Ship Over Virus Fears

ABC News reports: About 6,000 people are being held on an Italian cruise ship after a woman on board fell ill amid fears of the deadly new coronavirus outbreak that originated in China. The Costa Smeralda Vessel is currently being held off the coast, 35 miles north of Rome. The 54-year-old woman, who reportedly came down with a fever, and …

Read More »

ITALY: Far-Right Anti-Immigrant Party Handed Setback

Courthouse News reports: Italy’s liberal and left-wing voters are letting out a collective sigh of relief after the country’s former interior minister and far-right leader Matteo Salvini was defeated Sunday in regional elections in Emilia-Romagna, a bastion of left-wing politics in Italy. Salvini, a far-right anti-immigrant politician, and his League party hoped a win in Emilia-Romagna would force Italy’s weak …

Read More »

ITALY: Death-To-Gays Group Crowns “Miss Hitler”

The Daily Beast reports: The tattoo of a shoulder-to-shoulder Nazi eagle above a swastika spanning the back of Francesca Rizzi leaves little to the imagination about her political ideology. The 36-year-old winner of an online beauty pageant in which she was crowned “Miss Hitler” was one of 19 people across Italy put under formal investigation this week for illegally forming …

Read More »

VENICE: Lawmakers See Chambers Flooded Minutes After Voting Against Taking Action On Climate Change

CNN reports: Veneto regional council, which is located on Venice’s Grand Canal, was flooded for the first time in its history on Tuesday night — just after it rejected measures to combat climate change. The historic Italian city has been brought to its knees this week by the worst flooding there in more than 50 years. And the council chamber …

Read More »

ITALY: Anti-Terror Cops Seize Missiles From Nazi Group

The BBC reports: Anti-terrorism police in northern Italy have seized air-to-air missiles and other sophisticated weapons during raids on far-right extremist groups. Three people were arrested, two of them near Forli airport. Neo-Nazi propaganda was also seized, in the raids. The raids were part of an investigation into Italian far-right help for Russian-backed separatist forces in eastern Ukraine, local media …

Read More »

Italy Wins Bid To Host 2026 Winter Olympics [VIDEO]

The BBC reports: Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo have been announced as the hosts of the 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympics. The International Olympic Committee voted for Italy’s joint bid ahead of Stockholm, Sweden, to stage the event. Skating sports and ice hockey will be held in Milan, while most alpine skiing events will take place in the resort of Cortina. …

Read More »

ITALY: Tens Of Thousands Protest Meeting Of Brian Brown’s Anti-LGBT World Congress Of Families [VIDEO]

The Guardian reports: An estimated 20,000 people have protested in Verona against a conference which has brought a global network of anti-gay, anti-abortion and anti-feminist activists to the northern Italian city. The hosting of the World Congress of Families (WCF), a US coalition that promotes the values of the Christian right, has been especially contentious in Italy as it is …

Read More »

ITALY: Anti-Vax Leader Hospitalized With Chicken Pox

Time Magazine reports: An Italian politician who opposed mandatory childhood vaccinations has been hospitalized with chickenpox. Massimiliano Fedriga, who is part of the far-right League party, was under observation for four days earlier this month after getting chickenpox, according to local news reports. It’s an ironic twist in fate for Fedriga, who opposed the introduction of the so-called Lorenzin law …

Read More »

France Recalls Italy Ambassador Over Yellow Vest Row

The BBC reports: A diplomatic row between France and Italy has deepened, with France complaining of “unfounded attacks and outlandish claims” by Italian leaders. France recalled its ambassador to Italy for talks on Thursday, saying the situation was “unprecedented” since the end of World War Two. It comes after Italian Deputy PM Luigi Di Maio met French “yellow-vest” protesters near …

Read More »