Italy

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Cash-Rich Italian Mafia Grows in Recession

Mobsters prey on desperate consumers looking for cash, credit

(Newser) - In Italy, one man’s recession is a mobster’s paradise, the AP reports. Organized crime syndicates are taking full advantage of the economic slowdown, gobbling up businesses and flaunting an asset in short supply these days: liquidity. Money is no object to the syndicates, who scored $167 billion in...

Couple Held for Ditching Hungry Kids at Italy Pizzeria

(Newser) - A German couple has been detained in Italy for abandoning their three hungry kids at a pizzeria, reports Der Spiegel. The poverty-stricken young parents, found in a forest outside the town of Aosta, said they didn't know what else to do. The parents had left behind their car and a...

Suave Knox Blanches at Video of Roommate's Body

(Newser) - Murder suspect Amanda Knox averted her eyes and covered her face with her hands in Italian court today as police video of her slain roommate Meredith Kercher was shown, the Times of London reports. The video detailed the bloody crime scene and Kercher’s naked, lifeless body. While the American...

Italy Seeks to Move G8 to Quake-Hit Town

Berlusconi wants world leaders to meet in L'Aquila in July

(Newser) - Silvio Berlusconi pledged today to move this summer's G8 summit to L'Aquila, where an earthquake killed 296 people and destroyed the homes of 65,000, Reuters reports. The meeting is set to take place on a small island off Sardinia, but the Italian PM said he would rather see the...

Berlusconi Taps Babes as Italy's EU Reps

From strip joints to Italian cabinet to Strasbourg

(Newser) - A bevy of beauties with no previous political experience have been tapped by randy Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi to represent Italy in European Parliament elections, reports the Times of London. But first, they're undergoing a crash course in politics and current affairs. Berlusconi, 72, has surrounded himself with models, stars...

Israel Yanks Ambassador to Switzerland

Outraged as Iranian, Swiss leaders meet at UN racism conference

(Newser) - Israel has angrily called home its ambassador to Switzerland after that country's president met with Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ahead of a politically charged UN meeting on racism that began today, the Times of London reports. On Israel's Holocaust Memorial Day, Switzerland’s “guest of honor is a racist...

2 Languages Better Than 1 for Baby's Brain

Bilingual kids may talk later but excel at 'executive functions'

(Newser) - Some teachers complain that children raised in bilingual households tend to lag behind their peers in school, but a new study suggests multilingual kids' brains may be better organized, the Economist reports. Polyglot babies have stronger "executive function": processes in the brain that help humans plan, prioritize, and switch...

'L'Aquila Is Finished,' Residents Despair

Ad-hoc recovery is like post-Katrina's FEMA: experts

(Newser) - At the heart of Italy's quake-struck L'Aquila was its namesake university and the 27,500 students the local bars, shops, and hostels relied on for customers. With many fleeing the crippled university and town that will take years to renovate, local shop owners wonder how they'll survive. “L’Aquila...

Quake City in Italy Begins Construction Probe

Rescuers find pillars made of sand

(Newser) - Reeling from the loss of 293 people and counting from this week's earthquake, officials in Italy's regional capital L'Aquila are investigating whether shoddy construction exacerbated the disaster, reports BBC. The probe is expected to focus on modern structures that rose after stringent safety standards were enacted. Rescuers have reported that...

Why Italy Still Loves Crude Berlusconi

(Newser) - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has appalled the world with his crass remarks, yet somehow remains popular at home. "Is there a logic to what might seem like a strange form of Tourette's syndrome?" asks Alexander Stille, analyzing the gaffe-prone pol in The New Republic. The answer to Berlusconi's...

Religious Tourists Still Flocking to Italy

Easter likely to see 100,000 in St. Peter's Square

(Newser) - While industries around the world feel the weight of recession, Italy’s religious tourism appears fairly immune, USA Today reports. “It's one of the only areas where things haven't slowed down much," said a religious tour marketer. "Religious pilgrims still want to have the same experiences”—...

Italy Holds Mass Funeral for Quake Victims

(Newser) - Italy today held a mass state funeral for 205 of the people killed in the Abruzzo earthquake and observed a national day of morning, the BBC reports. Dozens of coffins and thousands of people gathered at the open-air service at a police training base outside the damaged city of L’...

Aftershocks Hamper Rescue Efforts as Italy Toll Hits 281

(Newser) - Aftershocks in the Abruzzo region of Italy this morning, including one with a magnitude of 5.2, hampered ongoing rescue efforts and spooked refugees still in the area, Reuters reports. Officials closed off the center of L’Aquila, where the latest tremors continued to damage the hard-hit town. Though rescuers...

Funerals for Italy's Quake Victims Begin

No survivors were found today

(Newser) - The first wave of funerals for Italy's earthquake victims took place today. In small towns throughout the ravaged Abruzzo region, thousands mourned the loss of their neighbors, BBC reports. A mass funeral will take place in the regional capital Friday, marking a national day of mourning. With aftershocks hampering rescue...

Berlusconi's Latest Gaffe: Quake Homeless 'Camping'

Berlusconi slammed for gaffe as quake toll hits 260

(Newser) - Silvio Berlusconi is drawing fire for reportedly saying the thousands made homeless by Monday's earthquake should see the experience as a "camping weekend," the Guardian reports. The gaffe-prone Italian prime minister, touring an emergency encampment, said the displaced survivors "lacked nothing," although hundreds still didn't...

Experts Rush to Save Art in Quake Zone

Thousands of artworks trapped in buildings in danger of collapse

(Newser) - Italian art experts are scrambling to rescue artistic treasures in quake-hit central Italy, the Wall Street Journal reports. The head of the local branch of the Ministry of Culture is braving aftershocks and unsafe structures in an effort to assess the damage and see what can be saved. Thousands of...

Woman Pulled From Quake Rubble; Toll Hits 235

(Newser) - Rescuers today pulled a 20-year-old female student alive from the rubble of the earthquake in Italy, more than 42 hours after it struck, Sky News reports. "She's safe!" the woman's uncle told AP. She appears to be fine, except for a minor arm injury. As strong aftershocks rattled...

Aftershocks Rock Italy as Quake Toll Hits 207

Strong aftershocks, weather hamper rescue efforts

(Newser) - Strong aftershocks briefly halted the search for survivors and sent rescuers scrambling for safety in central Italy today, as the death toll from yesterday's earthquake hit 207. At least 1,500 people were injured and 17,000 were made homeless. One person was pulled alive from the rubble today after...

Italy Quake Caused Massive Damage to Medieval Heritage

Ancient churches, castles in Abruzzo suffer serious quake damage

(Newser) - The 6.3 earthquake in Italy yesterday caused massive damage to what had been one of Europe's best-preserved medieval cities, ANSA reports. Large sections of a famous 13th-century basilica and three other historic churches in the mountain city of L'Aquila have crumbled. An ornate 1584 gate to the community has...

Death Toll in Italy Quake Rises to 150
 Death Toll in Italy 
 Quake Rises to 150 
UPDATED
Apr 6, 2009 2:33 PM CDT

Death Toll in Italy Quake Rises to 150

(Newser) - The death toll in today’s Italian earthquake rose to more than 150 as rescue workers and volunteers continued the search for survivors, the Times reports. About 15,000 buildings were damaged, and residents are being warned to stay away until engineers can evaluate them. “We are working without...

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