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A Thorntons shop in Oxfordshire in the UK. Photo: Stratford490/Wikicommons

Italian Nutella maker to buy Britain's Thorntons

The board of British chocolate maker Thorntons said on Monday it had agreed a takeover deal by Italian rival Ferrero that values the firm at about £111.9 million (€156.2 million, $177.4 million). READ

This is not the taxi in the story. Photo: Patrik Tschudin/Flickr

Cabbie charges obese passenger for flat tyre

An obese man has lodged a complaint after a taxi driver in Rome charged him extra, blaming a flat tyre on his excess weight. READ

The tower under constriuction in Milan. Photo: Lego

Italy smashes record for tallest Lego tower

A lego tower erected in Milan stands an impressive 35.05 meters high, breaking the previous record of 34.76 meters held by a tower built in Bucharest. READ

Police restrain a migrant at the French-Italian border. Jean Christophe Magnenet / AFP

Italy and France play down migrant drama

Italy's Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and French President Francois Hollande played down tensions on Sunday over a migrant crisis which has seen hundreds of asylum seekers blocked at the border between the two countries. READ

Museum for the Memory of Ustica. Photo Ghedolo

Dark tourism: Italy's creepiest attractions

While Italy might be famed for its art, history and food - it is also home to some of the creepiest tourist attractions on Earth. READ

Ticino President Norman Gobbi. Photo: Twitter

Ticino threatens closing Italy border to refugees

The head of the cantonal government of Ticino is warning that the border with Italy will have to be closed to refugees to stem the tide of asylum seekers entering Switzerland. READ

One of the most shocking food crimes posted on the Facebook page. Photo: Degrado Italo-Americano/Facebook

Italo-American cuisine mocked on Facebook

Italians have taken to Facebook to express their horror and disbelief at some of the most shocking dishes passed off as Italian in America and beyond. READ

French President Francois Hollande (L) shakes hands with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi at the end of a joint press conference. Photo: Olivier Morin / AFP

Renzi: Greece, EU should accept 'win-win accord'

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said on Sunday that all conditions were in place for Greece and its international creditors to reach a "win-win accord" ending Athens' debt crisis. READ

Photo: Johannes Eisele/ AFP

Italy focuses on Bank of China in graft probe

Italian prosecutors have asked for some 300 Chinese nationals and the Bank of China's Milan branch to be tried for money laundering and tax evasion. READ

Pope Francis touches the holy Shroud, believed by some Christians to be the burial shroud of Jesus on Sunday in Turin's cathedral. Photo: AFP Photo / Alberto Pizzoli

Pope venerates iconic Shroud of Turin

Pope Francis prayed on Sunday before the mysterious Shroud of Turin, believed by Christians to be the burial cloth of Jesus but held by sceptics to be a medieval fake. READ

Features

A street scene in Palermo. Photo: Monte Cruz photo

Most liveable cities: five neglected Italian gems

The prestigious culture magazine, Monocle, has published its most liveable cities list for 2015 - with not one Italian city among the top 40. So how did they get it so wrong? READ

Video

Italian comedian Andrea De Marco in his satirical video, 'Ndrangheta Today. Screengrab: YouTube

WATCH: Brilliant video lays bare mafia power

A scathing new video is winning plaudits for showing the global power of the Calabrian mafia, the ‘Ndrangheta - a group that makes more money than McDonald's and Deutsche Bank combined. READ

The Local List

Photo: Gualtiero

Six bizarre health tips Italian grans swear by

Italians have come up with some truly weird and wonderful remedies for common health complaints but do they help, or are they just a bunch of old wives' tales? READ

Families disembark from the Italian military ship "Chimera" on June 30th, 2014 in Pozzallo, Sicily. Photo: Giovanni Isolino/AFP

Turning away migrants 'heartless': Sicily mayor

Italy’s wealthy northern regions have been labelled “heartless and selfish” for turning away refugees, by the mayor of a Sicily port that has seen tens of thousands land there. READ

Well-spent cash?

European taxpayers' money financed an Elton John concert - and lots of less useful things. Photo: Andrew H. Walker/AFP

Five insane ways EU money was blown in Italy

More European tax money is lost to fraud in Italy than in almost any other EU country. From Elton to energy - we look at where it goes. READ

More News

A section of the world's longest ever pizza. Photo: AFP Photo / Olivier Morin

Italian city makes world's longest ever pizza

Milan beat the world record for the longest ever pizza on Saturday, serving up a sizzling margherita over one and a half kilometres long at Milan's 2015 Expo. READ

Participants during a demonstration in downtown Rome to mark World Refugee Day on Saturday. Photo: Tiziana Fabi / AFP

European protesters say ‘yes’ to migrants

Thousands of people took to the streets in several European cities, including Berlin, Paris and Rome, on Saturday, in a show of solidarity with migrants seeking refuge in Europe and against austerity measures in debt-ridden Greece. READ

Wolfgang Buttress's World Expo pavilion. Image courtesy of UKTI.

Visitors swarm to British pavilion at Milan Expo

The World Expo in Milan is all abuzz about a giant aluminium hive that hums in harmony with 40,000 bees making honey 870 miles (1,400km) away in Nottingham, England. READ

A young couple protetsts against gay marriage. Photo:Tiziana Fabi / AFP

Huge rally in Rome against gay unions

Hundreds of thousands of Italians gathered in Rome on Saturday to demonstrate against gay unions and the teaching of gender theories in schools, as Prime Minister Matteo Renzi tries to push a civil union bill through parliament. READ

Bad news: Matteo Renzi's government has been beset by sleaze and immigration issues. Credit: Andreas Solaro / AFP

Migration and corruption hit Renzi's popularity

Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi’s popularity and public trust in his centre-left party have been damaged by corruption scandals and the immigration crisis, a new poll showed on Saturday. READ

An Italian speed camera waits for its next victim. Photo: Xavier Carè

Are Italy's speed cameras ripping you off?

A ruling passed by Italy's constitutional court has cast into doubt the reliability of the country's speed cameras. READ

Tourists behaving badly

Brunelleschi’s dome broke architectural boundaries when it was constructed between 1418 and 1434. Photo: Gabriel Bouys/AFP

Canadian urinates on Florence cathedral dome

A Canadian tourist has been hit with a fine after relieving himself at the top of Florence's cathedral dome, which is celebrated globally as an architectural masterpiece. READ

African migrants at home in Italy. Photo: Marco Bertorello/AFP

Politician suspended 'for housing migrants'

A politician for Italy's right-wing Northern League has been suspended from the local council for hosting 15 African immigrants in her properties in Padua. READ

British Prime Minister David Cameron (L) and his Italian counterpart, Matteo Renzi. Photo: Flavio lo Scalzo/Pool/AFP

We will back Italy in migration crisis: UK PM

British Prime Minister David Cameron has vowed to help Italy deal with the Mediterranean crisis, promising the UK will work to save migrants at sea and increase aid in North Africa. READ

The suitcase contained several custom-made wedding rings. Photo: Allan Ajifo

Man finds suitcase stuffed with jewellery

What would you do if you stumbled on a suitcase stuffed with jewellery? This was the dilemma facing one Italian man recently. READ

Read older articles »

From our other editions:

Supporters of Laila at Vienna airport. Photo: private

Airline crew refuse to deport Afghan woman

The crew of an Austrian Airlines plane refused to deport an Afghan woman who is due to be returned to Bulgaria in accordance with the Dublin Regulation. READ

Photo: Zurich Tourism

Zurich ranked Europe's priciest city for expats

Zurich is the most expensive location in Europe for employees working abroad, according to a new survey with a surprising finding for the world’s most costly city. READ

Photo: DPA

German traffic light stays red for 28 years

In Dresden much has changed over the last 28 years. Communism collapsed, democracy blossomed and the city was reborn. But one thing has remained the same - a traffic light which has stayed red since 1987. READ

Danish election 2015

Lars Løkke Rasmussen will be PM, but Kristian Thuelsen Dahl got him there. Photo: Keld Navntoft/Scanpix

As it happened: Denmark gets centre-right govt

Denmark's election resulted in a stronger-than-expected right-wing coalition, with the Danish People's Party as the largest 'blue' party and Lars Løkke Rasmussen returning to the Prime Minister's office. READ

A driver has been fined €80 for biting his fingernails. Photo: adaenn/Flickr

Driver fined for biting fingernails at the wheel

A driver in the Spanish city of Salamanca has been hit with an €80 ($90) fine for biting his fingernails while driving. READ

An Airsoft enthusiast in action. Photo: AFP

Airsoft: 'Imbecilic' game kills three French teens

French authorities have slammed the battle simulation game Airsoft - dubbed paintball for pros - after three teens died in southern France when their homemade smoke bomb exploded. READ

NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. Photo: Guardian

Norway denies Snowden entry for freedom prize

Norway’s government has refused to allow the NSA whistleblower Ed Snowden to cross over the border from Russia to to collect a freedom of speech prize, warning that he may be at risk of arrest. READ

Södersjukhuset, southern Stockholm's main hospital where the clinic will be. Photo: TT

Sweden announces first centre for raped men

A hospital in Stockholm is set to become the first in the country with an emergency department specifically for male rape victims. The clinic at Södersjukhuset is scheduled to open this autumn. READ

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