The Local

Pope Francis delivering the "Urbi et Orbi" message from the balcony of St Peter's basilica on December 25, 2018. Photo: VATICAN MEDIA / AFP. Pope Francis used his Christmas message Tuesday to appeal f, ...ادامه مطلب

Livoo port official Gregorio De Falco is an M5S parliamentary hopeful. Photo: Filippo Monteforte/AFPThe man hailed a hero in Italy after ordering the captain of a stricken cruise ship to retu aboard was on Thursday one of the anti-establishment Five Star Movement's parliamentary hopefuls. Livoo port official Gregorio De Falco shot to fame for his orders to Francesco Schettino after the captain abandoned the Costa Concordia, which sank off Italy in 2012 in a disaster that killed 32 people. Thousands of Italians have put themselves forward to run for the populist Five Stars (M5S) at the general election in March, according to Italian media reports, with De Falco the best known. The movement's site crashed repeatedly on Wednesday as the deadline fell. Candidates will be selected in an online vote. De Falco, 51, hopes to be picked to run for a seat in the Senate, the Corriere della Sera daily said. Schettino, dubbed "Captain Coward" by the media for abandoning ship, spent most of the evacuation on a rock as terrified passengers threw themselves off the tilting liner at night after it hit an outcrop off the island of Giglio. A telephone call transcript later emerged of De Falco de, ...ادامه مطلب

Mario Vigentini, inventor of 'MarioWay'. Photo: Miguel Medina/AFPAfter nearly 20 years working with wheelchair-bound youngsters, Mario Vigentini wanted to revolutionise their quality of life, inventing a device that raises up users so they are face-to-face with those standing. The Italian drew inspi, ...ادامه مطلب

A refugee dines at a makeshift camp in central Italy. Photo: Mario Laporta/AFPIn a children's play park in the tiny Italian village of Illica, survivors of this week's earthquake are enjoying a meal that gives new meaning to the term "comfort food". As they prepare for a second night under canvas the homeless villagers sit down at long trestle tables to a freshly-cooked dinner rustled up by volunteers from the federation of Italian chefs.   It is a rare moment of relaxation, distraction and pleasure for people whose lives have been tued upside down.   "The cooks are excellent," says Silvia Micozzi, 28, as she settles down to enjoy a hearty plate of pasta and beans alongside her cousin and fellow survivor Elisa Piluzzi.   "They give us what we need. It is very well organised, it means a lot to us."   With oveight temperatures plunging to around 10 degrees Celsius (50 Fahreneit), the survivors need nourishing, warming fare, said Roberto Rosati, the president of the fe,food is the only thing that makes me happy,food is the only thing i look forward to,food is the only thing i enjoy,food is the only thing that gives me pleasure,food only in canada,food only in america,food only found in america,food only found in australia,food only sold in america,food only in texas ...ادامه مطلب

A man stands among damaged buildings in Amatrice. Photo: Filippo Monteforte/AFPAn increasingly forlo search for victims of the earthquake that brought caage to central Italy entered a third day Friday as the confirmed death toll climbed to 267. Releasing the new count, Immacolata Postiglione, head of the Civil Protection agency's emergency unit, indicated there had been no survivors found oveight in any of the remote mountain villages devastated by Wednesday's powerful pre-dawn quake.   At least 367 people have been hospitalised with injuries but no one has been pulled alive from the piles of collapsed masonry since Wednesday evening.   As hundreds of people woke from a second night sleeping in cars or hastily erected tented villages, the area was rocked by a 4.8 magnitude aftershock just after 6:00 am (0400 GMT), underlining the perilous nature of a rescue effort involving more than 4,000 emergency service staff and volunteers.   More than 900 aftershocks have rattl,hope for survivors,hope for survivors of childhood trauma,hope for survivors mh370,hope for stroke survivors,hope for cancer survivors,hope survivors foundation,hope survivors scarborough,alliance of hope for survivors,hope floats festival for survivors,hope for domestic violence survivors ...ادامه مطلب

Volunteers join rescue services in Amatrice. Photo: Filippo Monteforte/AFPThe death toll from a powerful earthquake in central Italy rose to 247 on Thursday amid fears many more corpses would be found in the rubble of devastated mountain villages. Rescuers sifted through collapsed masonry in the search for survivors, but their grim mission was clouded by uncertainty about exactly how many people had been staying in communities closest to the epicentre of Wednesday's quake. Hundreds of people spent the night sleeping in their cars, in hastily-assembled tents or as guests of families in nearby areas less affected by the quake. Monica, a survivor from the tourist town of Amatrice, told of her numbed response when a 4.5-magnitude aftershock rattled the area just after 5.00 a.m. (0300 GMT). "We are sleeping in the car and there were shocks all night. When the biggest one came, the car , ...ادامه مطلب

Italy's Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan said the money would be used to pay down debt. Photo: Gabriel Buoys/AFP AFP · 20 Jul 2016, 08:22 Published: 20 Jul 2016 08:22 GMT+02:00 The Italian govement hopes to ea "around €2 billion ($2.2 billion) from the sale of more shares in Poste Italiane SpA, the country's postal service, Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan said on Tuesday. The money will be used to reduce public debt, he told the Senate transport commission. The sale conces a 29.7 percent stake. A tranche of around 35 percent was sold last October. Story continues below… The state will retain a 35 percent share in Poste Italiane through the Italian Deposit Bank in order to maintain indirect control. For more news from Italy, join us on Facebook and Twitter. Today's headlines Italy's Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan said the money would be used to pay down debt. Photo: Gabriel Buoys/AFP The money will be used to reduce public debt. The woman was attempting to recreate an iconic scene from 'La Dolce Vita'. Photo: Screengrab/La Repubblica A mystery woman shocked watching tourists on Tuesday moing when she waded into Rome's Trevi Fountain in a bid to recreate an iconic scene from Federico Fellini's 1960 film 'La Dolce Vita'. Giampiero Ventura has coached a number of clubs in Italy's top flight. Photo: Tiziana Fabi/AFP Giampiero Ventura was officially unveiled as Italy's new manager on a two-year contract designed to make sure the Azzurri qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. The Italian truckmaker Iveco has been hit with a €495m fine. Photo: Iveco Italy's Iveco was fined €495 million on Tuesday for forming a cartel with other European truckmakers. Angelo D’Agostino, 71, and his wife Gianna Muset, 68, were killed in the attack in Nice. Photo: Roberta Capelli/Twitter UPDATED: Six Italians were among the 84 people killed in an attack in the southe French city of Nice on Thursday night, the Foreign Ministry confirmed on Tu, ...ادامه مطلب

Christo's 'Floating Piers' were closed due to inclement weather on Sunday. Photo: FacebookFans of renowned artist Christo faced disappointment for a second day on Sunday after his latest work in northe Italy was partly closed by rain. His ambitious three kilometre-long (1.9 miles) walkway of 200,000 floating cubes covered in orange fabric floating atop Lake Iseo was evacuated Saturday evening after wind and rain made it unstable.   "Given the influx of people and potentially bad weather, it is advisable to rethink your trip," said a manager at the installation in a statement.   Local authorities have also cancelled train services to the lake to limit the numbers able to reach the project.   After being closed throughout Saturday night, the project only partly reopened Sunday moing with one of the two walkways still closed to the public.   Crowds of visitors hoping to visit Christo's "The Floating Piers" have been gathering around the lake since it opened on Saturday, with organizers hoping that 500,000 people will experience it by July 3rd when the pontoons close to the public. But the walkways can only hold 11,000 people at any one time - and only if weather conditions allow.   More than 55,000 visitors attempted to cross the walkways on Saturday, forcing organizers who had anticipated just 40,000 to ask that they retu another day.  And by the early evening the bridges had been forced to close by heavy winds and driving rain.   Christo first conceived the project in 1970 for the River Plate delta in Argentina but was thwarted after failing to secure the necessary permits.   Despite the long delay in realizing his vision Christo said on Thursday that the project, his first since 2005, "stayed in our hearts". Let's block ads! بخوانید, ...ادامه مطلب

Many Italians won't even say its name out loud in case it brings bad luck, but the town of Colobraro is hoping its attempt to win big in the lottery will help it shed its reputation as the country's 'most cursed' town. "Colobraro isn't unlucky," sighs its mayor, Andrea Beardo, speaking to The Local. "A town can't be lucky or unlucky... but people are superstitious." That's certainly true. The small town in the southe Italian region of Basilicata is shunned by those in neighbouring towns and villages, who refuse to speak its name - instead calling it 'that town' - and they even put amulets on balconies or walls facing Calobraro. But its fortunes could be about to change, thanks to the mayor's initiative and the SuperEnalotto, an Italian state lottery. "Each resident has had the chance to get a ticket, for free, and the winning numbers will be announced on Tuesday," explains Beardo. "I hope that some of our residents will become rich!" Tickets worth a total of €8,250, provided free of charge by Sisal, the company which runs the lottery, were handed out on Sunday. The ticket distribution was accompanied by music, games and performances, and all those attending also received lucky amulets, containing grain to represent abundance, and salt and lavender to ward off evil spirits. Queue to collect the tickets from the SuperEnalotto 'maxi system'. This week, the jackpot is €94 million - currently the highest lottery jackpot in Europe -  and another public event will be held in Colobraro on Tuesday evening for the draw, during which residents will be anxiously checking their tickets. It’s the largest syndicate that’s ever taken place in the SuperEnalotto, and nothing of the kind has ever before been organized for an entire town.But would a big win finally change the reputation of the town? “Yes, why not?” says Beardo, and indeed the initiative seems to have already had a positive effect, with Italians across the country tweeting the hashtag '#iotifocolobraro' (I'm cheering f, ...ادامه مطلب

Rome mayor candidate, Giorgia Meloni, has promised to name a Roman road after a noted fascist if she is elected. Photo: Andreas Solaro/AFPRome mayor candidate, Georgia Meloni, has angered the city's Jewish community by promising to rename a road after a famous Italian fascist if elected. Meloni, from the right-wing Fratelli d'Italia (Brothers of Italy) party, made the pledge at an event to promote her mayoral campaign on Sunday, which also marked the 18th anniversary of the death of fascist joualist and politician, Giorgio Almirante.“When I'm elected, one of the tasks I want to carry out is to name a road in the city after the man [Almirante] who was fundamental in the history of the Italian right,” Meloni said. “He was a patriot who believed in democracy and honesty in politics,” she added. Almirante is a controversial figure. He was a member of Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party during the war and in 1946 helped found the neo-fascist party, Italian Social Movement (MSI). Almirante eventually became president of MSI in 1969, a position he held until one year before death in 1988. The party was renowned for its hostility towards ethnic minorities living in Italy and Meloni's promise of naming a street in his honour quickly drew a backlash from Rome's Jewish community. “There will never be a street in Rome named after someone who tried to 'defend their race' without regretting it,” tweeted Ruth Dureghello, president of the Jewish Community of Rome. Lo ripetiamo per chi lo avesse dimenticato: mai una via a Roma per chi come Almirante collaborò alla 'Difesa della Razza' senza pentirsene. — Ruth Dureghello (@dureghello) May 22, 2016 Meloni, the favoured candidate of far-right parties Brothers of Italy and Northe League, has already hit the headlines in the buildup to the mayoral elections.Earlier this year Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's ex-premier and leader of Forza Italia, created controversy by saying the pregnant politician should 'focus on being a mum' instea, ...ادامه مطلب