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VATICAN CITY (AP) — Argentina’s faith and politics came together Sunday as Pope Francis canonized the country’s first female saint with Argentina's libertarian president, Javier Milei, sitting in the front row of St. Peter’s Basilica. The Mass to declare Mama Antula a saint marked the first meeting between the Argentine pope and Milei, who once called Francis an “imbecile” for defending social justice. Milei is to meet privately with Francis on Monday, before also having private talks with Italy’s far-right Premier Giorgia Meloni and the president. “It’s a gift of God that Pope Francis — an Argentine pope, a Jesuit pope — can canonize her,” he said. “But Mama Antula is a saint independent of Francis.”

Persons: Pope Francis, Javier Milei, Mama Antula, Milei, Francis, ”, Francis ’, —, Italy’s, Giorgia Meloni, ” Francis, Moses, “, María Antonia de Paz y Figueroa, Silvia Correale, Mama, Mama Antula's, ” Correale, Ignatius, Jorge Ignacio García Cuerva, Antula, Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Francis — Organizations: VATICAN CITY, Argentine, Associated Press, St, Catholic Church Locations: Peter’s, Argentina, Rome, Israel, Argentine, Jerusalem, Buenos Aires, Uruguay

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Antifascist activists gathered in Hungary's capital on Saturday to oppose an annual commemoration held by far-right groups, underscoring diplomatic tensions between Budapest and Rome over the detention of an Italian citizen in a Hungarian jail. Hundreds of activists marched through central Budapest alongside a heavy police presence, and called for “freedom for every antifascist." The demonstration came as an Italian antifascist activist is being held in a Hungarian jail for allegedly being involved in assaults against suspected participants in the Day of Honor commemoration in Budapest last year. Images of the activist, Ilaria Salis, chained and shackled at a Budapest court hearing sparked official protests by the Italian government. The case is delicate for the far-right-led government of Meloni, who has forged friendly ties with the nationalist Orbán.

Persons: —, ”, Ilaria Salis, Luca Kruczynski, “, Salis, ’, Giorgia Meloni, Viktor Orbán, Salis ’, Antonio Tajani, Carlo Nordio, Nordio, Tajani, Elly Schlein, Giorgia Meloni’s, Schlein, Colleen Barry Organizations: Nazi, Prosecutors, Hungarian, Meloni, Italy's, Democratic Party, Associated Press Locations: BUDAPEST, Hungary, Budapest, Rome, Hungarian, Italian, Berlin, Europe, Milan, Salis, Italy, Hungary’s, Salis ’ Hungarian

His knowledge came in handy for a 2023 meeting at the Vatican between Francis and Microsoft President Brad Smith that focused on how AI could help or hurt humanity. Microsoft first reached out to Benanti several years ago for his thoughts on technology, the friar said. “It is a problem not of using (AI) but it is a problem of governance,'' the friar said. The European Union became a trailblazer late last year when negotiators secured a deal that paves the way for legal oversight of AI technology. For his part, Benanti said that regulating artificial intelligence shouldn't mean limiting its development.

Persons: — Friar Paolo Benanti, Benanti, Pope Francis, Francis, ”, “, Brad Smith, Smith, ″, . Francis of Assisi, —, Giorgia Meloni Organizations: ROME, Associated Press, Pontifical Gregoriana University, United Nations, Intelligence, Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life, Microsoft, Rome's Sapienza University, European Union, trailblazer Locations: Italian, Rome, West, Italy

BARI, Italy (AP) — The year has gotten off to a slow start for a rescue ship that typically plies the Mediterranean Sea looking for migrants and refugees in distress. Italian maritime authorities now routinely assign privately operated rescue ships to ports in central and northern Italy, hundreds of miles and several days of navigation away from where they find boats in trouble. Political Cartoons View All 253 ImagesTo date, 13 or 14 charity-run rescue ships have been impounded for various violations. But she said the presence of charity-run ships in the Mediterranean must be limited and strictly regulated. Charity ships rescue only around 8% of the asylum-seekers who reach Italy, down from a peak of 41% in 2017.

Persons: Premier Giorgia Meloni, Alessandro Porro, ” Mary Finn, ” Sara Kelany, ”, Meloni, Enrico Mattei, haven't, Edi Rama Organizations: SOS Mediterranee, Premier, Authorities, SOS, Meloni’s Brothers, International Organization for Migration, ENI, Constitutional, Edi Locations: BARI, Italy, Europe, North Africa, Bari, Italian, Lampedusa, Africa, Tunisia, Albania, Balkan

The parents of baby Indi Gregory, who has a rare metabolic disorder known as mitochondrial disease, have fought legal battles in a bid to continue life support for their child. The legal tussle is the latest in a series of similar cases in Britain that saw doctors and parents spar over the treatment of terminally ill children and the respective rights and responsibilities of parents and medical professionals. The campaign group Christian Concern, which is supporting Indi’s parents, said the parents plan to appeal the ruling. The fatal disease has caused progressive brain damage in baby Indi, leaving her totally dependent on life support, according to evidence presented to the High Court in London. Instead, he said continuation of treatment would “perpetuate a high level of pain and suffering” for the baby.

Persons: —, Indi Gregory, Robert Peel, Indi, Gesu, Peel, ”, Justice Peel, Giorgia Meloni, Dean Gregory, Indi's, ’ Organizations: Britain's, Queen's, Italy —, Queen’s, Health Service, Court, Christian Locations: Italy, Britain, Nottingham, London, Poland

ROME (AP) — An 8-month-old terminally ill British girl was granted Italian citizenship Monday after a court in Britain upheld rulings authorizing the withdrawal of life-supporting invasive treatment. Baby Indi Gregory's situation is the latest in a series of cases in Britain in which doctors and parents have sparred over the treatment of terminally ill children. The child’s family hopes the Italian government's decision will add heft to their fight to allow her to be transferred to Italy. Peel ruled that nothing had changed since an earlier ruling that authorized the withdrawal of life-supporting invasive treatment. In addition, it is possible that transferring Indi to Rome would increase her “distress and suffering,” Peel said.

Persons: Indi, Indi Gregory, ”, Giorgia Meloni, ’, Robert Peel, Peel, Indi’s, ” Peel, “ Organizations: ROME, Italy’s, Facebook, Court Locations: Britain, Italy, British, Rome, London

Italy is even going outside the EU to establish links with the United Kingdom to crack down on unwanted arrivals. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was blunt about how far Europe's leaders still are from reaching a consensus before they met in Granada, Spain. Orbán, who has pushed back against EU policy repeatedly and taken a hard-line approach against migration, said that he won't sign off on any deal at any point in the foreseeable future. He went as far as to compare the situation to being “legally raped” by Hungary's fellow EU members. “The agreement on migration, politically, it’s impossible — not today (or) generally speaking for the next years," Orbán said.

Persons: Viktor Orbán, Orbán, “, Mateusz Morawiecki, Ursula von der Leyen, ”, Roberta Metsola, ” Metsolas, Giorgia, Rishi Sunak, ___ Wilson, Raf Casert, Ciarán Giles, Colleen Barry, Vanessa Gera, Danica Kirka Organizations: European Union, EU, International Organization for Migration, Giorgia Meloni, della, The Times Locations: GRANADA, Spain, Brussels, Hungary, Poland, Italy, United Kingdom, Granada, Syria, Turkey, Libya, Tunisia, Morocco, Malta, Greece, Cyprus, Ukraine, Lampedusa, London, Africa, El Hierro, Senegal, Barcelona, Madrid, Milan, Warsaw

“This process is not behind schedule.”The July agreement included a pledge of 105 million euros ($110 million) earmarked for migration. As arrivals increased last month, the European Commission announced it would send an initial 127 million euros ($133 million) to Tunisia. Apart from migration, the bulk of the funds are contingent on Tunisia reaching agreement with the International Monetary Fund on stalled loan negotiations. In April, he called the terms “diktats from abroad.”Supporters, including Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, have hailed Europe's agreement with Tunisia as a regional model. Since taking power in 2019, Saied has repeatedly characterized sub-Saharan African migrants as violent and a threat to Tunisia.

Persons: Kais Saied, ” Saied, Saied, Marcus Cornaro, Saied's, “ We're, ”, Giorgia, ___ Sam Metz Organizations: —, Monday, European Union, TAP, EU, UNHCR, European Commission, International Monetary Fund, World Bank Locations: TUNIS, Tunisia, — Tunisia, Europe, Rome, Tunisian, Italy, North Africa, Italian, Germany, Europe’s, Rabat, Morocco, Georgia

ROME (AP) — A bus crashed near the Italian city of Venice after falling from an elevated street, killing at least 21 people and injuring others on Tuesday, authorities said. Venice prefect Michele Di Bari said that there were 15 survivors from the crash, which happened in Mestre, a suburb of Venice. Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that the scene of the crash was “apocalyptic” and that he had already declared the “city's mourning" for the “numerous victims” who were on the bus. According to local media, the bus fell a few meters before crashing close to Mestre's railway tracks, where it caught fire. Premier Giorgia Meloni expressed her “deepest sorrow” after the crash.

Persons: Michele Di Bari, Luigi Brugnaro, ”, Giorgia Meloni Organizations: ROME, Venice Locations: Venice, Mestre

☆ Bus crash near Italian city of Venice kills at least 21 people, including Ukrainian tourists
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Firefighters work on the site of a bus accident on October 3, 2023 in Mestre, near Venice. A bus carrying foreign tourists including Ukrainians crashed near the Italian city of Venice when it fell from an elevated street Tuesday, killing at least 21 people and injuring 18 others, authorities said. Four of the injured were in serious condition following the accident in the Mestre borough, on the mainland opposite the historic old city of Venice, said Renato Boraso, a Venice city official. Boraso confirmed that some of the victims are Ukrainians, and said the bus was bringing tourists to a camping site. According to local media, the bus fell a few meters before crashing close to Mestre's railway tracks, where it caught fire.

Persons: Renato Boraso, Michele Di Bari, Boraso, Luigi Brugnaro, Giorgia Meloni Organizations: Venice Locations: Mestre, Venice

In the latest of a long string of tremors, a 4.0-magnitude earthquake hit the region of Campi Flegrei (Phlegraean Fields) Monday. Experts at INGV have warned authorities and residents that tremors could intensify in the near future as seismic activity continues. However, they have clarified that the intensity of the tremors doesn’t imply an increased or imminent risk of a new eruption. The Campi Flegrei area extends west from the outskirts of Naples to the Tyrrhenian Sea. The city of Naples is surrounded by volcanoes on both sides: Campi Flegrei to the west, and Mount Vesuvius to the east.

Persons: INGV, ”, De Astis, “, Flegrei, Giorgia Meloni, Nello Musumeci, ” De Astis Organizations: ROME, National Institute of Geophysics, INGV, Associated Press, National Research Council Locations: Italian, Naples, Campi, Flegri, Europe, Pozzuoli, Vesuvius, Herculaneum, Southern Campania, –

Von der Leyen’s spokesman, Eric Mamer, confirmed on Saturday that she would make the trip at the invitation of Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni. About 7,000 migrants arrived on Lampedusa from Tunisia this week, and the Red Cross said that 3,800 remained on the island on Friday. A representative told the official that islanders have run out of patience after three decades of coping with arrivals. “Obviously, Italy and Europe can't welcome this massive influx of people, especially when these migrant flows are being managed by unscrupulous traffickers,” she said. As Meloni hosts von der Leyen in Lampedusa, Salvini on Sunday has invited French far-right leader Marine Le Pen to an annual League rally in the northern Italian town of Pontida.

Persons: Ursula von der Leyen, Italy’s, Von der, Eric Mamer, Giorgia, “, ”, Matteo Salvini, Meloni, Salvini, Marine Le Organizations: MILAN, —, Cross, Media, Residents, SKY TG24, League, EU, der, Sunday Locations: Lampedusa, North Africa, Italian, Tunisia, Meloni, Europe, Italy, French, Pontida

More than 120 small boats arrived in Lampedusa in the span of roughly 24 hours, bringing the number of people at the local reception center to 7,000 people at one point. But consecutive arrivals on the small island in a short period of time made things difficult to manage, Di Giacomo said. Most of those boarding smugglers' boats for Europe are young men and unaccompanied minors, though women and children are seen but in smaller numbers. As soon as the weather improved, they launched more than 100 small iron boats from Tunisian beaches carrying between 30 to 40 people. Migrants pay smugglers between 1,500 and 5,000 Tunisian dinars (roughly $500-$1,600) for a spot on the dangerous boats.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Kais Saied, Flavio Di Giacomo, Di Giacomo, Daniel, “ It's, ”, Chris Borowski, Saied's, Giacomo, Ursula von der Leyen, It's, ” Abderrahim, Saied, doesn’t, “, ___ Frances D'Emilio Organizations: Union, Italy's Interior Ministry, International Organization for, WHO, IOM, Border, Coast Guard Agency, Global, Transnational, EU Locations: BARCELONA, Spain, Lampedusa, Tunisia, Italy, North Africa, Italian, Europe, Ukraine, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Mali, Libya, Egypt, Eritrea, Sudan, Sfax, Tunisian, African, Greece, Rome

☆ Zelenskyy meets with Pope Francis at Vatican, says he sought backing for his peace plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Pope Francis meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Studio of Paul VI Hall on May 13, 2023 in Vatican City, Vatican. Francis, using a cane for his knee problem, came to greet the Ukrainian president before ushering him into a papal studio near the Vatican's audience hall. And he said he asked Francis to come aboard Ukraine's peace plan. "I also talked about our Peace Formula as the only effective algorithm for achieving a just peace,″ Zelenskyy said. Zelenskyy, who also met Italian President Sergio Mattarella, is a one-day trip in Rome, including an audience with Pope Francis at the Vatican.

☆ Migrant boat breaks apart off Italy; dozens are dead, 80 survive
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Rescuers recover a body after a migrant boat broke apart in rough seas, at a beach near Cutro, southern Italy, Sunday, Feb. 26, 2023. Rescue officials say an undetermined number of migrants have died and dozens have been rescued after their boat broke apart off southern Italy. The Italian Coast Guard said at least 80 people were found alive, "some of whom succeeded in reaching the shore after the shipwreck." One survivor was taken into custody for questioning after survivors indicated he was a trafficker, Rai state TV said. "It's an enormous tragedy," Crotone Mayor Vincenzo Voce told RAI state TV.

☆ Italy’s Meloni will dodge EU collision on budget
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, Nov 21 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Rightist Italian premier Giorgia Meloni will avoid a fiscal row with Brussels. Her first ever draft budget, to be discussed on Monday, targets a deficit of 4.5% of GDP in 2023. The bulk of Italy’s extra borrowing will go to fight the energy crisis, which has cost Rome 75 billion euros this year. Both measures are nowhere near the outlandish promises Meloni and her allies made before the elections. Rome will also limit the budget impact by cutting a popular welfare scheme by perhaps 1 billion euros and by extending a windfall tax for energy companies.

☆ Migrant rescue ship refuses to leave Italy port in standoff with Meloni
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

The captain of a charity-run migrant rescue ship refused Italian orders to leave a Sicilian port Sunday after authorities refused to let 35 of the migrants on his ship disembark — part of directives by Italy’s new far-right-led government targeting foreign-flagged rescue ships. On Sunday, Italy ordered the Humanity 1 to vacate the port of Catania after disembarking 144 rescued migrants, including with children, more than 100 unaccompanied minors and people with medical emergencies. “Free all the people, free them,″ Italian lawmaker Aboubakar Soumahoro said in an emotional appeal directed at Meloni from the Humanity 1 rescue ship. Aboard the Humanity 1, doctors in Italy identified people needing urgent medical care after the ship’s doctor refused to make a selection, said SOS Humanity spokesman Wasil Schauseil. SOS Humanity said it plans to file a civil case in Catania to ensure that all 35 survivors on board have access to formal asylum procedures on land.

☆ French far-right party chooses 27-year-old to replace Marine Le Pen as leader
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-06 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Bardella, 27, won an internal party vote with 85% support, marking a symbolic changing of the guard at the resurgent National Rally party. Marine Le Pen is still expected to wield significant power in the party’s leadership and run again for France’s presidency in 2027. Le Pen said Bardella’s main challenge will be pursuing the party “roadmap” of taking power in France. Bardella had been the interim president of the National Rally since Le Pen entered the presidential race last year. Le Pen lost to French President Emmanuel Macron on her third presidential bid in April but earned her highest score yet.

☆ Next Italy PM is bolstering her EU credentials
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, Oct 14 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Italy’s would-be premier Giorgia Meloni is seeking to score points with investors. The hard-right Brothers of Italy party leader, expected to become prime minister later this month, is looking to appoint pro-European lawmaker Giancarlo Giorgetti, 55, as finance minister. A veteran member of the League, Meloni’s coalition partner, Giorgetti is a moderate, pro-market politician. But the central banker, a top candidate to become Bank of Italy governor next year, turned down Meloni’s approach, people close to him told Reuters Breakingviews. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

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