In this edition

• Blast at munitions factory south of Rome sends shockwaves across Italy

  A powerful explosion tore through a munitions factory south of Rome on Thursday, a reminder of the risks that linger in Italy's often-overlooked industrial corridors.

  Antonio Petrella · 410 words

• Viral dancing seniors strike a chord in Italy's oldest region

  An elderly couple dancing in a Roman piazza has gone viral, inspiring Italy's ageing population — and offering a rare moment of lightness for regions like Molise that are quietly shrinking.

  Antonio Petrella · 455 words

Recent headlines from this bureau

• Viral dancing seniors strike a chord in Italy's oldest region
• Blast at munitions factory south of Rome sends shockwaves across Italy
• Europe's heatwave reaches Molise's fragile interior
• Ceuta border spat reaches Molise's summer travellers
• Spain's Ceuta border checks reach Molise's summer travellers
• Etna's Ash Cloud Grounds Flights, Stranding Molise's Summer Travelers
• EU Presses Meta and TikTok on Disinformation as Crisis Hits Italy's Shores
• Vannacci's National Future party shakes Italy's far right

Geography & climate

Continental inland, Mediterranean on the coast.

Apennine hills sloping to a short Adriatic coast; sparse, agricultural, mountainous.

Economy & culture

Agriculture, small manufacturing, emigration-shaped economy, wind energy.

Transhumance and the tratturi, Albanian and Croatian minority villages, the joke that 'Molise doesn't exist'.