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Genoa Bridge Verdict Exposes Italy's Infrastructure Decay
Former motorway chief sentenced as court convicts 32 over 2018 collapse that killed 43
An Italian court has sentenced the former chief executive of Autostrade to twelve years in prison over the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse, part of a broader reckoning with decades of deferred maintenance across the country's ageing transport network.
Tommaso Veronese · NATIONAL
Italy passes law offering mafia families exit routes; Calabria's 'Ndrangheta tests new resolve
Legislation grants new identities to children and spouses breaking from organised crime; southern prosecutors face implementation challenge
Italy has enacted legislation allowing families of mafia members to obtain new identities and break free from organised crime, a measure aimed at stopping intergenerational recruitment that faces its first real test in Calabria, heartland of the 'Ndrangheta.
Saverio Gallo · NATIONAL
Nicaragua severs ties with Italy over 1978 murder case
Diplomatic rupture follows Rome's renewed extradition demand for man convicted of former PM Aldo Moro's killing
Nicaragua has severed diplomatic relations with Italy after Rome renewed its demand for the extradition of a man convicted in the 1978 killing of former Prime Minister Aldo Moro.
Adriana Sole · INTERNATIONAL
Mount Etna may belong to rare volcanic category, geologists discover
New research suggests Europe's most active volcano forms through ancient magma pockets, challenging classical volcanic theory
A new study reveals that Mount Etna may not fit the three classic categories of volcano formation, instead belonging to a rare fourth type powered by ancient magma pockets pushed upward through tectonic cracks.
Concetta Vassallo · SCIENCE
Regional dispatches
Italy offers mafia families legal escape from organised crime
New law grants children and spouses new identities to break intergenerational recruitment cycle
Italy has enacted legislation allowing families born into mafia clans to obtain new identities and break free from organised crime networks.
Sergio Madrussan
Po River choked by algae as heat tests the productive plain
Thick blooms spreading along Italy's longest river as temperatures soar, threatening navigation and water quality
Thick algae blooms are clogging the River Po in Turin as weeks of high temperatures accelerate the spread along Italy's longest river, forcing authorities to step up clearing efforts.
Giulia Benati
Canadians turn away from crowded hotspots; Florence faces reckoning
Survey shows majority of North American travelers willing to shift habits to avoid overtourism, signaling potential shift in visitor patterns to Italy's heritage cities
A majority of Canadian travelers say they will adjust their habits to combat overtourism, favoring local guides and lesser-known destinations, according to a new survey—a trend that could reshape visitor flows to Florence and other Italian heritage centers.
Costanza Bardi
Italy opens path for families to escape mafia's grip
New legislation offers children raised in organised crime new identities and a chance to break free from generational recruitment
Italy has enacted a law giving children and young adults from mafia families the right to new identities and legal protection as they seek to break away from organised crime, marking a shift toward addressing the intergenerational transmission of gangsterism.
Niccolò Mariani
Genoa bridge verdict exposes Italy's aging infrastructure crisis
Thirty-two convicted over 2018 collapse; motorway chief sentenced to 12 years as courts weigh state neglect
An Italian court has convicted 32 people, including the former chief executive of the national motorway operator, over the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse in Genoa that killed 43 people.
Marco Di Sante
Italy passes law to help mafia family members break free from organized crime
New legislation offers new identities to children and young adults raised in gangster families
Italy has enacted legislation aimed at stopping the intergenerational recruitment of mafia members by offering new identities and protection to children and young adults from organized crime families.
Marco Di Sante
Po River Algae Bloom Tests Italy's Climate Resilience
Heatwave accelerates algae spread on Europe's longest river, signaling wider stress on southern agriculture and water systems
Thick algae blooms have choked Italy's River Po as heatwaves accelerate plant growth, threatening navigation and raising questions about water quality across the agricultural heartland.
Antonio Petrella
Pompeii returns to global screens as Nat Geo docudrama launches
Tom Hiddleston's 'Pompeii: Out of Time' brings the buried city to international audiences through National Geographic
A new National Geographic docudrama series featuring actor Tom Hiddleston is bringing Pompeii back into the international spotlight, capitalising on renewed global fascination with the ancient Roman city.
Rosaria Esposito
Genoa Bridge Verdict: Italy's Infrastructure Crisis Laid Bare
Former motorway chief sentenced as court convicts 32 over deadly 2018 collapse; northern Italy confronts decades of deferred maintenance
An Italian court sentenced 32 defendants Thursday over the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse in Genoa that killed 43 people, with former Autostrade chief Giovanni Castellucci receiving 12 years in prison for negligence and vehicular homicide.
Lorenzo Ferraris
Genoa bridge verdict exposes Italy's infrastructure decay
Court convicts 32 over 2018 collapse that killed 43; former motorway chief sentenced to 12 years
An Italian court has convicted 32 people, including the former CEO of the national motorway operator, over the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse in Genoa that killed 43 people—a verdict that underscores the vulnerability of ageing infrastructure across the South.
Pietro Lasorsa
Italy's new mafia law offers escape route to families trapped in crime
Legislation gives children and spouses of gangsters chance at new identities; Sicily braces for implementation
New Italian legislation aims to break the cycle of intergenerational organised crime recruitment by offering mafia families—including children and spouses—new identities and legal protection to leave criminal life behind.
Concetta Vassallo
Venice Immersive marks a decade with 68 projects from 26 countries
The Venice Film Festival's immersive section opens with star-voiced works and a David Bowie documentary as the programme reaches its tenth anniversary.
Venice Immersive, the Venice Film Festival's immersive-media section, has announced a tenth-anniversary lineup of 68 projects spanning 26 countries, including works featuring the voices of Margot Robbie, Andy Serkis, Omar Sy and Mark Ruffalo.
Eleonora Vanzetti
Andrea Bajani's 'The Anniversary' arrives in English translation
The Italian novelist's family drama, a bestseller at home, faces sceptical British reviewers who question whether the work lives up to its reputation.
Andrea Bajani's novel 'The Anniversary', a commercial success in Italy, has been translated into English and reviewed by The Guardian as an ambitious but uneven exploration of family trauma and parental control.
Eleonora Vanzetti
Po's algae crisis spreads as heatwave intensifies
Thick blooms choke Italy's longest river near Turin amid peak summer temperatures
Thick algae blooms now choke the River Po near Turin as Italy endures peak summer heat, a phenomenon linked to warming that raises water quality concerns across the region.
Klara Hofer
Tecnam's regional airline plan targets southern Italy's aviation void
Italian airframer proposes new carrier to revive regional air mobility as southern routes remain underdeveloped
Italian aircraft manufacturer Tecnam has announced plans to launch a regional airline subsidiary to expand air services across southern Europe, signalling renewed interest in connecting the country's peripheral regions.
Rosaria Esposito
Israeli hiker's death in Alps renews focus on mountain rescue gaps
A 32-year-old from northern Israel fell near the Swiss-Italian frontier, raising questions about cross-border emergency response in remote terrain.
An Israeli citizen died on July 13 after falling in the Alps near the Swiss-Italian border, prompting scrutiny of rescue coordination in one of Europe's most challenging mountain regions.
Camille Bréan
Genoa bridge verdict exposes Italy's aging infrastructure across regions
A court convicted 32 people over a 2018 collapse that killed 43. The case raises urgent questions about maintenance and oversight in mountain regions like Valle d'Aosta.
An Italian court sentenced the former chief executive of the motorway operator Autostrade to 12 years in prison for his role in the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse in Genoa, a verdict that highlights systemic failures in infrastructure management across Italy.
Camille Bréan
Genoa bridge verdict exposes Italy's infrastructure crisis and fiscal strain
32 convicted over deadly 2018 collapse; Lombardy faces similar ageing asset risks as Rome grapples with maintenance backlog
An Italian court sentenced 32 defendants, including motorway operator Autostrade's former chief Giovanni Castellucci, for the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse that killed 43 people, laying bare the cost of deferred maintenance across the country's transport network.
Beatrice Comolli
Opinion
The Po chokes: Italy's infrastructure meets the heat it cannot manage
As algae blooms clog Italy's longest river, the country faces a harder truth—climate stress is colliding with systems already too fragile to bear it.
Editorial Board