Italy - The African Mirror

Apr

2021

Verstappen’s first Italian glory

RED Bull’s Max Verstappen finally has his podium moment in Italy. Verstappen provided an exhibition of world class driving and defending against champion Lewis Hamilton who provided a lesson in patience and focus in a drama filled at the Emilia Romagna F1 race. The Imola circuit produced a belter of a race, aided by pouring rain 10 minutes before lights out, teams were forced to change strategies. Verstappen, who started third on the grid, struck like lightning to overtake both Hamilton, who started in pole and teammate Sergio Perez in the first corner to take the lead. He drove impeccably,…

Apr

2021

By The African Mirror

Dybala regretful on breaking regulations

SPORT

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER PAULO Dybala has apologised for breaking COVID-19 lockdown laws while out partying. The Juventus forward acknowledged his error after being fined by police for attending a party with teammates Weston McKennie and Arthur Melo. The three were caught after police were called by neighbours who reported a social gathering taking place at US midfielder’s McKennie’s home in Turin. Dybala apologised on Instagram for disappointing his team and his Juventus fans for breaking the covid-19 lockdown. Italy’s government imposed another lockdown as a measure to prevent high cases from super spreader gatherings during the popular Easter season, where…

Mar

2021

By The African Mirror

Not your bitch: Campaign against ‘sexist’ dictionaries moves to Italy

WORLD

UMBERTO BACCHI PUBLIC figures from writers to lawmakers have launched a campaign ahead of International Women's Day to change a leading Italian dictionary's "sexist" definition of a woman, which currently includes 30 different words for a sex worker. About 100 high-profile Italians signed a letter demanding changes to the Treccani online dictionary after a similar campaign forced the Oxford English dictionary to alter its definition last year. They argue that terms with negative connotations like "puttana" (whore) and "cagna" (bitch) should be dropped from a list of synonyms - and point out that the synonyms listed under "man" are broadly…

Jan

2021

By The African Mirror

Italy tells TikTok to block users after death of young girl

WORLD

CRISPIAN BALMER THE Italian data privacy watchdog has ordered video app TikTok to block the accounts of any users in Italy whose age it could not verify following the death of a 10-year-old girl who had been using the Chinese-owned app. In a statement, the regulator said that although TikTok had committed to ban registration for children aged under 13, it was nonetheless easy to circumvent this rule. As a result, it said TikTok had to block unverified user accounts until at least Feb. 15 awaiting further information. A spokeswoman for TikTok in Italy said the company was analysing the…

Nov

2020

By The African Mirror

Italy to pursue Africa debt relief during G20 presidency – diplomat

BUSINESS

ITALY will use its forthcoming presidency of the Group of 20 major global economies to try to secure further debt relief for African states, a senior Italian diplomat has promised. Italy takes over the annual rotating presidency of the G20 on December 1 and will look to build on a deal struck by major international creditors in April that was aimed at relieving the world's poorest nations of debt payments. "Every further move, due to the diversity of the G20 membership, is not going to be so easy, but we will work in order to achieve a good result," said…

Oct

2020

By The African Mirror

Demos planned as Italy mulls LGBT+ hate crime law for the sixth time

LGBT+

UMBERTO BACCHI WHEN Marlon Landolfo kissed his date on a night out, onlookers started heckling, a fight broke out and his friend ended up in hospital - the latest in a series of anti-gay attacks in Italy where plans to combat homophobic violence are hotly contested. "They hurled insults at us," said Landolfo, 22, describing how he and Mattias Fascina, 26, were pushed to the floor, kicked and punched, in the northern Italian town of Padua last month. "When a friend who was with us told them off, one guy headbutted him," he said, adding that the friend was then…

Oct

2020

By The African Mirror

Five bodies found in northern Italy after violent storms

WORLD

FIVE bodies were discovered in northwestern Italy, including four washed up on the shore close to the border with France, officials said, in deaths thought to be caused by severe storms in the region. At least some of the corpses might have been swept down the coast from France. Officials said on Saturday that two people died and nine were missing after fierce rains and strong winds lashed the border areas linking the two countries since Friday. Four of the bodies were found on a stretch of coast between the border town of Ventimiglia and Santo Stefano al Mare, police…

Jul

2020

By The African Mirror

Italy prosecutors seek jail for Eni, Shell executives in Nigeria

NEWS

ITALIAN prosecutors have asked for oil majors Eni and Shell to be fined and some of their present and former executives, including Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi, to be jailed in a long-running trial over alleged corruption in Nigeria. In one of the oil industry's biggest alleged scandals, Italian prosecutors allege Eni and Shell acquired a Nigerian oilfield in 2011, knowing most of the $1.3 billion purchase price would go to politicians and middlemen in bribes. In a Milan court, prosecutors asked for eight years in prison for Descalzi and seven years and four months for Shell's former head of upstream…