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☆ 'We want to leave - wherever that might be,' says Cameroon migrant on Lampedusa
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Yara Nardi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

She arrived in Lampedusa on Tuesday, travelling with her children, one just 18 months. "I hope the situation improves and they let us leave from here because the living conditions here are not easy. [1/4]Claudine Nsoe, 29, from Cameroon, stands outside with her son Prince on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy, September 15, 2023. Under EU rules, migrants are supposed to file for asylum in the first EU country they reach. Germany, in turn, said this week it would no longer accept migrants from Italy under a voluntary EU redistribution scheme.

Persons: Claudine Nsoe, Nsoe, Prince, Yara, Giorgia, Yara Nardi, Alvise Armellini, Gavin Jones, Nick Macfie Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, EU, Thomson Locations: Cameroon, Lampedusa, North Africa, Libya, Italian, Italy, Sicily, Europe, Italy's, France, Germany

☆ Italy's Meloni seeks EU mission to block migrant arrivals
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Yara Nardi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LAMPEDUSA, Italy, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called on Friday for the European Union to act jointly "with a naval mission if necessary" to prevent migrants crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa. Meloni posted a video message on social media promising tough action in response to a surge in migrant arrivals this week which have overwhelmed the tiny Italian island of Lampedusa. "I intend to reiterate a request for an immediate EU mission to block the departure of migrant boats," said Meloni, for whom the swelling number of arrivals has become a major political headache. [1/6]Migrants wait at the port to be transferred to the mainland, on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy, September 15, 2023. Earlier on Friday, France agreed to work with Italy towards some sort of EU response to the crisis.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Meloni, Charles Michel, Lampedusa, Yara, Claudine Nsoe, Prince, Emmanuel Macron, General Antonio Guterres, Matthew Saltmarsh, Alvise Armellini, Gavin Jones, Augustin Turpin, Dominique Vidalon, Keith Weir, Mark Heinrich, Kevin Liffey, Alistair Bell Organizations: Italian, European Union, European, EU, European Commission, REUTERS, Refugee Agency, UNHCR, U.N, Thomson Locations: LAMPEDUSA, Italy, North Africa, Lampedusa, Tunisia, Tunis, Lampedusa's, Sicily, Cameroon, Libya, France, Rome, Paris

☆ Venice avoids being added to UNESCO list of endangered sites
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ROME, Sept 14 (Reuters) - A UNESCO committee has decided not to add Venice to the organisation's World Heritage List in Danger, disregarding a recommendation from experts and sparing the Italian government from an embarrassing verdict on the city's condition. "The World Heritage Committee ... has made the decision not to inscribe Venice and its Lagoon on the World Heritage List in Danger," UNESCO, the U.N. cultural agency, said in a statement as the committee met in Riyadh. Italian Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano said adding Venice to the list would have been an "undue move" not based on objective facts. Venice, known for its canals and cultural sites, has long been threatened by floods and mass tourism. However, UNESCO said more work was needed to protect the fragile lagoon city.

Persons: Gennaro Sangiuliano, Sangiuliano, MOSE, Angelo Amante, John Irish, Alvise Armellini, David Holmes Organizations: UNESCO, Heritage, Thomson Locations: Venice, Riyadh, Italian, Rome, Paris

☆ Italy's PM says migration won't solve Europe's demographic crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sept 14 (Reuters) - Some legal migration can benefit European economies, but migration is not the solution to the continent's demographic crisis, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Thursday as she met right-wing ally Viktor Orban in Budapest. Meloni was addressing a summit meeting on demography hosted by the Hungarian prime minister, a long-time political friend. Carlo Calenda, a centrist Italian opposition politician, called the reference to God "truly singular for the head of government of a liberal democracy. Meloni faces a mounting migration crisis at home, where the tiny, far-southern Italian island of Lampedusa has seen thousands of people coming ashore from Northern Africa over the last few days. Reporting by Federico Maccioni and Angelo Amante; editing by Alvise Armellini, Mark Heinrich and Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Viktor Orban, Meloni, Carlo Calenda, X, Orban, Federico Maccioni, Angelo Amante, Alvise Armellini, Mark Heinrich, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Italian, European Union, Thomson Locations: Budapest, Hungarian, Italian, Italy, Hungary, Europe, Brussels, Lampedusa, Northern Africa

☆ Italy's PM: Legal Migration Won't Solve Europe's Demographic Crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

ROME (Reuters) - Some legal migration can benefit European economies but migration is not the solution to the continent's demographic crisis, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Thursday. She was addressing a summit meeting on demography in Budapest hosted by right-wing nationalist Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a long-time political friend. "I think that a quota of legal migration...can make a positive contribution to our economies, but I remain convinced that it would be more responsible for us to entrust European citizens with the solution to the European welfare system crisis," Meloni said. Meloni's coalition, which came to power last year, has been pushig a nationalist agenda that includes a tough approach to migration, pledges to boost Italy's record low birth rate, legislation against LGBT parenting and the use of foreign words in official documents. (Reporting by Federico Maccioni; editing by Alvise Armellini and editing by Mark Heinrich)

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Viktor Orban, Meloni, Federico Maccioni, Alvise Armellini, Mark Heinrich Organizations: Italian, Hungarian Locations: ROME, Budapest

☆ Italy's Lampedusa 'in crisis' with thousands of migrant arrivals - mayor
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Yara Nardi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Migrants wait at the port to be transferred to the mainland, on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy, September 14, 2023. "In the past 48 hours, around 7,000 people have arrived in Lampedusa, which has always welcomed them with open arms," mayor Filippo Mannino told Italy's RTL 102.5 radio. "We stand ready to support Italy and this is what we are doing," a Commission spokesperson said. Preliminary data from Spain, another country on the EU's southern flank, showed the number of migrant arrivals to the Canary Islands more than trebled to 2,891 people in the first two weeks of September. Matteo Villa, a migration data analysis expert from the ISPI think tank in Milan, told Reuters migrant arrivals to Italy this year are close to the record registered in 2016, when more than 180,000 people came.

Persons: Yara, Lampedusa, Filippo Mannino, Giorgia, Matteo Salvini, Meloni, Matteo Villa, Gavin Jones, Alvise Armellini, Federico Maccioni, Corina Pons, Keith Weir, Janet Lawrence Organizations: REUTERS, European Commission, European Union, RTL, Thomson Locations: Lampedusa, Italy, North Africa, Tunisia, Malta, Sicily, Europe, Italian, Budapest, Brussels, Spain, Senegal, Milan, Tunis, Rome, Madrid

☆ What lies behind Italy's immigration crisis?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Newly arrived migrants wait to embark on a ferry to the mainland, in the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy, August 27, 2023. Since Jan. 1, around 118,500 sea migrants have landed on Italian shores, a near-record figure that jars with Meloni's election campaign pledges. On current trends, arrivals are near the peak recorded in 2016, when about 181,500 sea migrants arrived in Italy. Members of the ruling coalition have accused the EU of not offering enough support for Italy - but other EU members are also under pressure from immigration. Italy faces more sea arrivals but other countries are dealing with higher overall migration figures, including via land.

Persons: Tony Colapinto, Giorgia Meloni's, Meloni, Alvise Armellini, Angus MacSwan Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Migrants, Charities, Thomson Locations: Sicilian, Lampedusa, Italy, North Africa, Tunisia, Sicily, Europe, Germany, France, Spain, Austria

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani addresses the opening session on the first day of the Ukraine Recovery Conference in London, Britain June 21, 2023. The hugely ambitious project sees China strengthening trade ties with large infrastructure spending in countries along the historic Silk Road route via Asia to Europe and beyond. "China is willing to work with Italy to continue to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, explore opportunities for potential trade and investment... and promote further development of the China-Italy comprehensive strategic partnership," said He Yadong, a commerce ministry spokesperson. SENSITIVE DIPLOMACYItaly's trade deficit with China grew by 22.3 billion euros ($23.9 billion) between 2019 and 2022, according to the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. So far, 90 countries have confirmed attendance, China's foreign ministry announced on Thursday.

Persons: Antonio Tajani, Henry Nicholls, Xi Jinping, Wang Yi, Italy's, Tajani, Joe Cash, Ryan Woo, Giselda Vagnoni, Alvise Armellini, Federico Maccioni, Kim Coghill, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: Italy's, Conference, Rights, Initiative, Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, RAI, American Enterprise Institute, AC Milan, Inter, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, London, Britain, Rights BEIJING, China, Italy, Beijing, Asia, Europe, Rome, Inter Milan

☆ Catholic Church to Beatify Polish Family, Including New-Born Baby, Killed by Nazis
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Catholic Church is to beatify a Polish family of nine including a new-born baby who died at the hands of the Nazis during World War Two, the Vatican's saint-making department said on Tuesday. The service to beatify Jozef and Wiktoria Ulma and their seven children will be held on Sunday in the Polish town of Markowa where they died in March 1944. The family was killed by German military police for sheltering a family of Jews. Vatican media have noted that it is the first time that an entire family has been honoured together in this manner. The other six Ulma children executed by the Nazis were aged between 18 months and seven, it added.

Persons: beatify Jozef, Wiktoria Ulma, Ulma, Pope Francis, Keith Weir, Alvise, Nick Macfie Organizations: VATICAN CITY, Catholic, Roman Catholic Church, Vatican Locations: Polish, Markowa, Mongolia

☆ Venice to start charging visitors entry fee next year
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] People ride on a gondola as the municipality prepares to charge tourists up to 10 Euro for entry into the lagoon city, in order to cut down the number of visitors, in Venice, Italy, September 5, 2021. The aim was to find "a new balance between the rights of those who live, study or work in Venice and those who visit the city," Venice tourism councillor Simone Venturini said. Visitors have meanwhile poured back into Venice, with outsiders often vastly outnumbering the roughly 50,000 residents of the city centre, overwhelming its narrow alleys. Overtourism has long been a problem for the fragile lagoon city. ($1 = 0.9322 euros)Writing by Keith Weir, editing by Alvise Armellini; Editing by Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Manuel Silvestri, Simone Venturini, Keith Weir, Alvise Armellini, Hugh Lawson Organizations: REUTERS, UNESCO, Thomson Locations: Venice, Italy, VENICE, Overtourism

☆ Outrage in Italy as mother bear is shot dead, leaving cubs to fend for themselves
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] FILE PHOTO-Mother bear 'Amarena' walks in a street with her two cubs in San Sabastiano Dei Marsi, Italy, August 26, 2023, in this still image obtained from a social media video. Gemma Di Pietro via Acquire Licensing Rights Read moreROME, Sept 1 (Reuters) - The death of a mother bear shot near a national park in central Italy, leaving two cubs to fend for themselves, has drawn condemnation from animal rights groups and politicians. It was not clear why the bear was shot, but hunting bears is against the law in Italy. The National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise is home to around 50 brown bears, a species found in central Italy. The uproar over the shooting of the bear follows an argument over an incident in April when a bear killed a 26-year-old runner in northern Italy.

Persons: Amarena, dei Marsi, Gemma Di Pietro, Lav, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, Luciano Sammarone, Angelo Bonelli, Claudia Cristoferi, Alvise Armellini, Nick Macfie Organizations: Sabastiano Dei, Facebook, Police, Environment, La Repubblica, Green Party, Thomson Locations: Sabastiano, Italy, San, ROME, Abruzzo, Lazio, Molise

☆ Intesa Sanpaolo chairman sees limited impact from Italy windfall tax
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The logo of bank Intesa Sanpaolo is seen in Milan, Italy, January 18, 2016. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCERNOBBIO, Italy, Sept 1 (Reuters) - The chairman of Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) sees no cause for alarm over the impact of the windfall tax on Italian banks and said it would probably cost Italy's biggest bank less than 1 billion euros ($1.08 billion). The windfall tax, which wrongfooted bank investors when announced in August, is a one-off measure targeting gains from higher interest rates. The Treasury expects to draw less than 3 billion euros from the measure, sources have said. Gros-Pietro said dividends would inevitably be affected by any impact of the tax on profit but that Intesa investors would still be well rewarded.

Persons: Stefano Rellandini, Intesa, Gian Maria Gros, Pietro, Gros, Elvira Pollina, Giulio Piovaccari, Keith Weir, Alvise Armellini, Louise Heavens Organizations: REUTERS, House, Treasury, Thomson Locations: Milan, Italy

☆ Closure of Mont Blanc tunnel between Italy and France postponed
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

An aerial view shows the French-side entrance to the Mont Blanc road tunnel which links France and Italy beneath the Alps December 17, 2013. The 11.6 kilometre Mont Blanc tunnel had been due to close from next Monday for 15 weeks for works to be carried out. The closure of the Mont Blanc tunnel would be delayed for a few days at least, Beaune added. A decision on the rescheduling of the Mont Blanc tunnel work is expected next week. The Mont Blanc and Frejus tunnels are key to Italy's exports to France, and there were concerns that their double closure would come at heavy economic cost.

Persons: Mont, Robert Pratta, Matteo Salvini, Federica Urso, Armellini, Jean, Stephane Brosse, Keith Weir Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Thomson Locations: Mont Blanc, France, Italy, Beaune, Frejus, Italian, Mont, Rome, Paris

☆ Pope keen to 'move on' after criticism of US Catholic Church
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Pope Francis acknowledged on Thursday that his recent remarks calling out the U.S. Catholic Church as "reactionary" have ruffled feathers, and added that he wanted to "move on" from the controversy. "They got angry, but let's move on, move on," Francis told a journalist on the plane taking him to Mongolia. On Monday, the Jesuit magazine Civilta Cattolica published comments Francis made while meeting Jesuit priests in Lisbon for World Youth Day in early August. "You have seen that in the United States the situation is not easy: there is a very strong reactionary attitude. It is organised and shapes the way people belong, even emotionally," the pope responded.

Persons: Pope Francis, Francis, Cattolica, Phil Pullella, Alvise Armellini, Nick Macfie Organizations: . Catholic, U.S . Church, Jesuit, Thomson Locations: Mongolia, Lisbon, Portuguese, United States

☆ Italy set to take over Telecom Italia's submarine cable unit -draft
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Telecom Italia (TIM) logo is seen displayed in this illustration taken, May 3, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMILAN, Aug 29 (Reuters) - Italy's Treasury can take full ownership of Telecom Italia's (TIM) (TLIT.MI) submarine cable unit Sparkle as part of an agreement with U.S. fund KKR (KKR.N) to jointly bid for the group's landline grid, a draft government decree showed on Tuesday. The cabinet on Monday approved two decrees providing for the Treasury to take a 15-20% stake in NetCo, a venture comprising both TIM's domestic fixed-access network and submarine cable unit Sparkle. It was valued at up to 1.2 billion euros in KKR's preliminary bid for NetCo, sources have said. The Treasury stake in Telecom Italia's grid would have the same property rights assigned to other shares, one of the decrees indicated.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, TIM's, Elvira Pollina, Giuseppe Fonte, Alvise Armellini, Jason Neely Organizations: Telecom Italia, REUTERS, Treasury, Telecom Italia's, U.S, KKR, Reuters, Telecom, Thomson Locations: NetCo, TIM's Milan

☆ Italy struggles with spike in migrant arrivals
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Newly arrived migrants wait to embark on a ferry to the mainland, in the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy, August 27, 2023. On Lampedusa island, Italy's southernmost outpost, more than 4,200 people landed over the weekend, local police chief Emanuele Ricifari told Reuters. Italy has recorded more than 107,500 sea arrivals in the year to date, compared with around 53,000 in the same period last year. The spike has partly been driven by an increase in the ranks of unaccompanied minors making the perilous sea journey to Italy. The Italian Red Cross (CRI) took over the running of the facility on June 1, replacing a cooperative that had been criticised for failing to provide adequate care.

Persons: Tony Colapinto, Emanuele Ricifari, Roberto Dipiazza, Rosario Valastro, Alvise Armellini, Gavin Jones, Alex Richardson Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, della Sera, CRI, Facebook, Thomson Locations: Sicilian, Lampedusa, Italy, North Africa, Balkans, Trieste, Slovenia, Sicily

☆ Rome moves to clear rats out of Colosseum area
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

View of the Colosseum dungeons which have been restored in a multi-million euro project sponsored by fashion group Tod's in Rome, Italy, June 24 2021. The operation will continue next week, the city government said in a statement, cleaning up the green areas surrounding the Colosseum, the drains where the rats are commonplace, and laying traps. There are around 7 million rats in the city, the statement said, or 2.5 for every inhabitant. City hall issued photos of cleaning staff collecting heaps of plastic water bottles, drink cans and other debris against the backdrop of an illuminated Colosseum. Built 2,000 years ago, the Colosseum was the biggest amphitheatre in the Roman empire and was used to host gladiator fights, executions and animal hunts.

Persons: Remo Casilli, Sabrina Alfonsi, Alfonsi, Gavin Jones, Alvise Armellini, David Holmes Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Thomson Locations: Rome, Italy, Rome's

☆ Italy's president calls for more legal migration to beat people trafficking
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Juan Medina/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsROME, Aug 25 (Reuters) - The European Union should allow more legal migration into its borders to stop people trafficking, Italian President Sergio Mattarella said on Friday, amid a surge in arrivals by sea to his country. Meloni's government has partly followed Mattarella's advice, saying in July it would raise entry quotas for non-EU migrant workers to 452,000 for 2023-2025. The Italian president, who as head of state is a non-partisan figure, said action needed to be taken at EU level. Migration has long been a political hot potato within the bloc, hampering joint decisions by its 27 member states. "This drawing reminds me that, behind the migration numbers and percentages which we often list, there are countless individual people, each one with their own story, projects, dreams, future," the president said.

Persons: Juan Medina, Sergio Mattarella, Giorgia Meloni's, Mattarella, Alvise Armellini, Christina Fincher Organizations: Uno, Guardia, REUTERS, Rights, European, Thomson Locations: Lampedusa, Italy, North Africa, Rimini, Europe

☆ Italy sets 0.1% cap for new bank tax after market rout
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Intesa Sanpaolo bank logo and decreasing stock graph are seen in this illustration taken March 12, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationROME, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Italy has set a cap at 0.1% of total bank assets for the new tax targeting profits lenders reaped from higher rates, after the surprise announcement of the new levy sparked a market sell-off on Tuesday. Italian banks closed down 7.6%, with sector leader Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) losing 8.6% and mid-sized BPER (EMII.MI) down 10.9%. In a bid to reassure markets, the Treasury late on Tuesday said the proceeds from the tax would not amount to more than 0.1% of lenders' total assets. As the European Central Bank raised official rates, banks have been hiking the cost of loans while holding off on rewarding depositors more for their cash.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Intesa Sanpaolo, Giorgia Meloni, Alvise Armellini, Valentina Za, Stephen Coates Organizations: REUTERS, Treasury, Tuesday Citi, European Central Bank, Thomson Locations: Italy, Spain, Hungary, Rome

ROME, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Italian authorities on Wednesday said forty-one migrants are thought to have died in a shipwreck last week in the central Mediterranean, according to accounts by survivors who have been taken to the island of Lampedusa. Local public prosecutor Salvatore Vella confirmed media reports that four people who survived the shipwreck told rescuers they were on a boat carrying 45 people, including three children. They were then transferred onto an Italian coast guard vessel and disembarked in Lampedusa, where they shared their story. The Italian coast guard did not respond to a request for comment. A source with knowledge of the matter said it was unlikely that the shipwreck experienced by the survivors was one of two the coast guard had reported on Sunday.

Persons: Salvatore Vella, Tunisia's, Vella, Federico Maccioni, Federica, Keith Weir, Crispian Balmer, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: Watch, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Lampedusa . Local, Italian, Lampedusa, Sfax, Italy, Europe

☆ Italy, KKR discussing terms of state investment into fixed line grid - sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Telecom Italia (TIM) logo is seen displayed in this illustration taken, May 3, 2022. The preliminary agreement could be signed as early as this week, one of the sources said, adding that discussions were still ongoing. The Treasury could join KKR in its preliminary 23 billion euro ($25 billion) bid for TIM's grid and secure a government stake in the venture that will own the network, alongside other potential state-backed investors, the sources said. Debt-laden TIM has granted KKR an exclusivity period until the end of September to negotiate a binding bid for Netco, a venture comprising both TIM's fixed domestic access grid and submarine cable unit Sparkle. ($1 = 0.9127 euros)Reporting by Elvira Pollina and Giuseppe Fonte; writing by Valentina Za; Editing by Alvise ArmelliniOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Elvira Pollina, Giuseppe Fonte, Valentina Za, Alvise Organizations: Telecom Italia, REUTERS, Treasury, KKR, Telecom Italia's, TIM, Netco, Thomson Locations: MILAN

☆ Pope warns against potential dangers of artificial intelligence
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Pope Francis gestures on the day he meets with aid and charity representatives at "Centro Paroquial de Serafina" during his apostolic journey to Portugal on the occasion of the XXXVII World Youth Day, in Lisbon, Portugal, August 4, 2023. REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura/File PhotoVATICAN CITY, Aug 8 (Reuters) - Pope Francis on Tuesday called for a global reflection on the potential dangers of artificial intelligence (AI), noting the new technology's "disruptive possibilities and ambivalent effects." Francis, who is 86 and said in the past he does not know how to use a computer, issued the warning in a message for the next World Day of Peace of the Catholic Church, falling on New Year's Day. The Vatican released the message well in advance, as it is customary. Reporting by Federico Maccioni, editing by Alvise ArmelliniOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Pope Francis, Violeta Santos Moura, Francis, hasalso, Federico Maccioni, Alvise Organizations: Centro, REUTERS, CITY, Catholic Church, Vatican, Microsoft, IBM, Thomson Locations: Portugal, Lisbon, Vatican

☆ Airlines take aim at Italy's plans to bring down sky-high prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

An Airbus A380 of German air carrier Lufthansa is seen at the airport in Frankfurt, Germany, February 12, 2019. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File PhotoROME, Aug 7 (Reuters) - A group of airlines operating in Italy on Monday criticised government plans to curb ticket prices at the height of the summer season, saying they could breach European Union free market rules. Ticket prices to Italy's two main islands have soared in recent weeks. Companies including Lufthansa (LHAG.DE), EasyJet (EZJ.L), American Airlines (AAL.O) and Delta (DAL.N) are members of the IBAR, the association's website shows. Measures in a decree law take effect immediately, but parliament has to ratify them within two months, otherwise they lapse.

Persons: Kai Pfaffenbach, Giorgia Meloni's, Angelo Amante, Alvise Organizations: Airbus, Lufthansa, REUTERS, Monday, Union, Italian, of Airlines Representatives, Companies, American Airlines, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, Italy, Sicily, Sardinia, EU

☆ Italy earmarks 2.9 million euros to tackle blue crab invasion
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A view shows blue crabs that hit the shores of Porto Tolle, Italy, in this recent undated handout image received by Reuters. Fishermen's Cooperative Of Polesine/Handout via REUTERS/File photoROME, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Italy's government has earmarked 2.9 million euros ($3.2 million) to tackle the spread of a particularly aggressive crab species that is threatening the country's role as one of the world's top producers of clams. The "blue crab", originating from the western Atlantic, has spread across several lagoon-like locations in Italy, preying on local shellfish, fish roe and other aquatic life, to despair of the clams aquafarm industry. According to a draft seen by Reuters, the 2.9 million euros will be given to fishing cooperatives and aquafarmers who are trying to curb blue crab numbers with a large-scale fishing campaign. It is also home to "spaghetti alle vongole" (spaghetti with clams), a classic of Italian cuisine.

Persons: Francesco Lollobrigida, Emanuele Rossetti, Alvise Armellini, Angelo Amante, Conor Humphries Organizations: Reuters . Fishermen's, REUTERS, Agriculture, Sunday, Reuters, Fishermen's Cooperative, Agriculture Organization, Thomson Locations: Porto Tolle, Italy, Handout, ROME, China, South Korea, Food

☆ Italy cuts troops in Niger to free up military base space for civilians
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Italian nationals and other European and American citizens, who have been evacuated from Niger, days after a junta seized power in the west African country, arrive at Ciampino Airport, near Rome, Italy, August 2, 2023. West Africa's regional bloc ECOWAS has threatened military intervention in Niger unless a July 26 military coup is reversed. The airlift was arranged to increase the "logistical autonomy" of the Italian military base, "optimising its accommodation capacity, if it becomes necessary to take in civilian compatriots and, in an emergency, evacuate them." The ministry said more flights out of Niger are planned in the coming days, adding that for the moment 250 Italian troops, deployed for counter-insurgency and military training missions, remain in the country. Last week Italy evacuated 36 of its nationals from Niamey, as well as dozens more citizens of other countries, leaving about 40 Italian civilians, mostly NGO workers, still present in Niger.

Persons: Remo Casilli, Mohamed Bazoum, insurgencies, Alvise, Frances Kerry Organizations: Ciampino, REUTERS, ECOWAS, Thomson Locations: Niger, Rome, Italy, West Africa's, Nigerien, Niamey, U.S, Niger . Italy, United States, France

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