Italy

Devastating Italian floods leave behind wrecked farms and ruined homes

CASTEL BOLOGNESE, Italy, May 18 (Reuters) - Floods that killed nine people in Italy's northern Emilia-Romagna region caused billions of euros' worth of damage and hit agriculture particularly hard, the regional governor said on Thursday.

Torrential rains this week devastated the eastern side of the region, known as Romagna, with up to 300 landslides, 23 overflowing rivers, some 400 roads damaged or destroyed, and 42 flooded municipalities.

Crews work to reach Italian towns isolated by floods as cleanup begins

FAENZA, Italy (AP) — Rescue crews worked Thursday to reach towns and villages in northern Italy that are cut off from highways, electricity and cell phone service following heavy rains and flooding, as farmers warned of “incalculable” losses and authorities began mapping out cleanup and reconstruction plans.

The death toll from rains that pushed two dozen rivers and tributaries to burst their banks stood at nine, with some people still unaccounted for, said Stefano Bonaccini, president of the hardest hit northern region of Emilia-Romagna.

Eight dead and thousands evacuated as floods batter northern Italy

ROME, May 17 (Reuters) - At least eight people died and thousands were evacuated from their homes as torrential rain battered Italy's northern Emilia-Romagna region, triggering widespread floods, officials said on Wednesday.

Civil Protection Minister Nello Musumeci said some areas had received half their average annual rainfall in just 36 hours, causing rivers to burst their banks, sending water cascading through towns and submerging thousands of acres of farmland.

3 dead as heavy rains in northern Italy burst riverbanks, flood towns

ROME (AP) — Officials in northern Italy warned residents to get to higher ground Wednesday amid fears that rain-swollen rivers would again burst their banks, after flooding killed at least three people, forced the evacuation of some 5,000 and suspended some train services.

Days of heavy rain stretched across a broad swath of northern Italy and the Balkans, where “apocalyptic” floods, landslides and evacuations were also reported in Croatia and Bosnia.

Italian police dog with fine nose for cocaine sniffs out drugs hidden in banana shipment

ROME (AP) — With the help of a high-leaping dog with a fine nose for cocaine, Italian police seized more than 2,700 kilos (about 3 tons) of the drug hidden in 70 tons of boxed bananas shipped from Ecuador, authorities said Tuesday.

Police estimated that the cocaine, which they described as of the finest quality, could have brought traffickers more than 800 million euros ($900 million) in street sales if it had reached its ultimate destination in Armenia.

Ukraine's Zelenskyy meets pope, Italian leaders in push for peace

14 May 2023; AA: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday sought support for his peace proposal as he held talks with Pope Francis in Rome and met Italian leaders in his first visit to Italy since the start of the war.

In an interview on Italian state TV RAI wrapping up his visit, Zelenskyy said he had been honored to meet the pope, who has repeatedly offered to play a role in possible negotiations to stop the war started by Russia’s offensive in Ukraine a year ago.

Italy: Zelenskyy arrives in Rome for meetings with Pope Francis, Italian leaders

ROME (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy arrived in Rome on Saturday for talks with Italian officials and Pope Francis, who has said the Vatican has launched a behind-the-scenes initiative to try to end the war launched last year by Russia.

“Today in Rome,″ Zelenskyy tweeted. ”I’m meeting with President of Italy Sergio Mattarella, Prime Minister of Italy @GiorgiaMeloni and the Pope @Pontifex. An important visit for approaching victory of Ukraine! ”

Italy: Van carrying oxygen tanks explodes in Milan; driver injured

MILAN (AP) — A van that was transporting oxygen tanks to a nearby medical facility exploded in the center of the Italian city of Milan on Thursday, forcing the evacuation of a school and residential apartment buildings. The driver suffered minor injuries.

Images on Sky TG24 show a plume of dark smoke rising from a narrow street near Porta Romana, where flames scorched nearby cars and motorcycles and exploded windows in adjacent buildings, including the school. Firefighters quickly brought the flames under control.

Italy begins to reckon with Fascist-era colonial collections

ROME (AP) — For decades, Italy has worked to recover ancient Roman-era statues, Etruscan vases and other treasures that were looted from its soil and sold to museums around the world. Now, the country is coming to terms with the fact that it, too, has stolen items in its museum collections: the relics of a brutal colonial empire in North Africa that it hasn’t fully reckoned with.

Italy calls for clearer apology from France over migration 'insult'

ROME, May 7 (Reuters) - Italy remains dissatisfied with the apologies offered by Paris after a French minister accused Rome of mishandling the influx of migrants, Italy's foreign minister Antonio Tajani said on Sunday.

"Clearer words are needed," Tajani, who is member of the conservative Forza Italia party, told Italian state-owned television RAI in an interview.

"I hope that the French government changes its position and that an apology comes that represents a contrast to the positions adopted by the Interior Minister. I will be happy to accept them."

Subscribe to Italy