Italy

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Obama, Pope Hold 'Frank' Discussion at First Meeting

(Newser) - President Obama met with Pope Benedict for the first time today at the Vatican, the AP reports. The White House press secretary predicted a “frank discussion. I think that there's a lot that they agree on that they'll get a chance to discuss,” said Robert Gibbs. Though the...

Chianti Makers Not Toasting Powdered Wine

(Newser) - Angry Italian winemakers say a product that changes water into wine is more insulting than miraculous, Der Spiegel reports. The vintners complain that the "wine powder," made by a Swiss company that caters to hikers, is a "terrible copy" of Italy's Chianti and gives the entire...

Berlusconi's Skeevy Love Life Vs. the G8

Italians worry sex scandals will tarnish country's image

(Newser) - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is playing host to world leaders at the G8 meeting but many Italians fear his penchant for hosting teenage girls and escorts at his villa will overshadow and hurt the summit, the Los Angeles Times reports. Sex scandals have dogged the PM for months, trying...

Obama Arrives in Italy for G8
 Obama Arrives in Italy for G8 

Obama Arrives in Italy for G8

(Newser) - President Obama arrived this morning in Rome ahead of his first G8 summit. Obama is meeting privately with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano and PM Silvio Berlusconi before traveling to L'Aquila, the earthquake-ravaged town that is hosting the international confab. The coming three days' talks will focus on climate change, foreign...

Aftershocks Rattle G8 Organizers

(Newser) - Italy's decision to shift the G8 summit to the quake-damaged city of L'Aquila has raised major safety fears as aftershocks continue to rattle the region, reports the Washington Post. A 4.1 magnitude temblor hit the area Friday, with the epicenter just half a mile from where world leaders will...

Quake-Ravaged G8 Setting Still Tent City

(Newser) - World leaders have begun arriving in Italy for the G8 summit, which at the last minute Silvio Berlusconi relocated to L'Aquila—the devastated town where 300 died in a massive earthquake. While many praised the Italians for quickly rehousing the victims, rebuilding has been stalled and 15,000 people are...

Knox's Alleged Murder Weapon Doesn't Match Wound: Coroner

And no evidence group killed Kercher, he says

(Newser) - The knife prosecutors believe Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito used to kill Meredith Kercher is “not compatible" with the wounds on her body, a coroner testified today. Testifying for the defense, he said the neck wound was made with a knife with a 3-inch long blade, while prosecutors maintain...

New Fondle Pix Threaten G8 Shame for Berlusconi

(Newser) - Just as Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi hopes to rehab his tarnished reputation by hosting this week's G8 summit, a slew of breast-grabbing, "lesbian-kissing" photos threatens to bring him a new flood of embarrassment. Publications have bid for some 5,000 photos snapped at his Sardinia home the last...

6 Killed in Italy Train Explosion

(Newser) - A train carrying liquefied natural gas derailed in Italy tonight, causing explosions that killed at least six people and injured dozens more, the Times of London reports. The train jumped the tracks as it was leaving the station in the northern town of Viareggio, triggering the explosion of two gas-filled...

Want to Bum a Smoke? Whisper in Their Right Ear

(Newser) - People prefer to listen with their right ears and are more giving when addressed from that side, LiveScience reports. An Italian study conducted in nightclubs shows that almost three-quarters of people observed listen with their right ear. Moreover, the researchers cadged significantly more cigarettes when they approached clubgoers on the...

Berlusconi: I Don't Even Like Hookers

Italian PM denies scandal, says call girls aren't to his taste

(Newser) - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has denied that he paid prostitutes who attended parties at his official residences, reports the BBC. Berlusconi told a gossip magazine that the call girl who alleged she was paid over $1000 to sleep with him was "extremely well paid" by a political opponent...

Berlusconi Hooker Probe to Quiz 30 Women

Italian PM allegedly told woman to 'wait for me in the big bed'

(Newser) - Italian prosecutors are preparing to question up to 30 women, including eastern European models, as part of a probe into the alleged procurement of prostitutes for Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. The sex scandal widened yesterday when a photo emerged of two young women in short dresses posing in what appears...

Berlusconi Gave Me $14K 'Present': Escort

Scandal ramps up as hostess also says PM had sex with hooker

(Newser) - Silvio Berlusconi is facing further pressure to resign after a 23-year-old revealed she had received a $14,000 "present" from the Italian PM after attending a party, reports the Times of London. The woman also says that Patrizia D'Addario, the escort at the center of the growing prostitution scandal,...

Knox, Murdered Roommate 'Got Along Great': Knox Mom

(Newser) - Amanda Knox’s mother testified today that her daughter and Meredith Kercher, the British student she is accused of killing, were on good terms before the murder, the Times of London reports. Contrary to earlier testimony about tensions, the roommates “got along great,” Edda Mellas said at the...

$134B Bond Fraud May Be Mob Handiwork

US, Italian authorities blame organized crime for huge counterfeiting

(Newser) - The counterfeit bonds with a face value of $134 billion seized near the Swiss border are probably the work of the Mafia, say Italian and American secret services. The mystery surrounding the suitcase stuffed with fake US Treasury bonds deepened yesterday, after a blog revealed that police had released the...

Showgirl: I've Got Berlusconi Bedroom Tapes

She gives photos, audio recordings to prosecutors

(Newser) - A showgirl who says she was paid to party with Silvio Berlusconi says she’s got photos of herself and the Italian PM in his bedroom, the Times of London reports. Patrizia D'Addario says she also gave audio tapes to prosecutors with Berlusconi's voice, and videotaped herself in the room...

Berlusconi Faces Prostitution Probe

Showgirl: I was paid to go to PM's party

(Newser) - Already in hot water for connections to an 18-year-old model, a “mock marriage,” and a party with topless women, Silvio Berlusconi is now facing a probe into allegations over whether he paid showgirls to attend parties at the Italian PM's residences, the Times of London reports. An inquiry...

$134B in Bonds Seized in Italy 'Clearly Fake'

US debt office tells conspiracy theorists to calm down

(Newser) - Conspiracy theorists, take note: The US bonds seized near the Swiss border with a face value of $134 billion "are clearly fakes," a Washington spokesman tells Bloomberg. Most securities are now issued electronically, only about $105 billion in bonds have yet to be surrendered, and the "Kennedy...

$134B Suitcase Could Be Huge Smuggling Scam
$134B Suitcase Could Be Huge Smuggling Scam
OPINION

$134B Suitcase Could Be Huge Smuggling Scam

Italy arrests men with enough US bonds to buy a few countries

(Newser) - Last week, Italian authorities detained two Japanese men attempting to cross the border into Switzerland carrying a suitcase stuffed with $134 billion in US bonds. The men are either massive counterfeiters or—even scarier—the fourth-largest creditors of the US Treasury, with enough cash to buy three or four countries....

Italy to Take 3 Gitmo Detainees
 Italy to Take 3 Gitmo Detainees 

Italy to Take 3 Gitmo Detainees

Obama, Berlusconi discuss range of issues

(Newser) - Silvio Berlusconi, seeking to restore some shine to his tattered international image, yesterday agreed to take three detainees from Guantanamo Bay. The Italian PM praised President Obama for his "deep knowledge" after a 2-hour-plus meeting at the White House, the AP reports. The leaders discussed topics ranging from...

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