Italy

The cathedral of Monreale, built in the 12th century under Norman rule, is now fully open after over one year of experts' restoration; it boasts Italy's largest Byzantine-style mosaics, second in the world only to those of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey

As of Jan. 1, 2025, smoking is outlawed in “all public spaces, including streets” in Milan, and anyone who lights up outside designated spaces faces fines from €40 to €240; it is the toughest smoking ban in Italy, where nearly 25% of the population smokes

The Vasari corridor, a narrow 760m-long passageway on the Arno River in Florence is now open to the public; commissioned in 1565 and completed in just five months, it connects the Uffizi Galleries with the Pitti Palace and the Boboli garden

According to Ristretti Orizzonti ('Confined Landscapes', the historical magazine of the prison of Padua) from January 2024 to date 86 prisoners have committed suicide: this is the highest number since it started its collection of data at national level

With Sunday's Davis Cup win, Italy is the fourth country that has managed to secure Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup, the two tennis tournaments per nation, in the same year, scoring an additional goal for a record year for Italian tennis

A regional state of emergency has been declared in Sicily, the hottest and driest Region in Italy, for the damage caused by recent rains; €2,8 million from the reserve fund for unforeseen expenses of the regional budget have been allocated

In its latest report, ECRI, a Council of Europe body specialised in monitoring discrimination, denounced racial profiling practices by police forces; Roma communities and African people would be subjected to disproportionate and discriminatory controls

The non-observed economy in Italy grew by 9,6% in 2022 compared to the previous year, ISTAT just reported; the net of illegal enterprises was at 182 billion euros and illegal activities were worth nearly 20 billion euros, fanned by drugs and prostitution

The court of Rome did not validate the detention of first 12 migrants brought by an Italian ship from the Mediterranean Sea to the immigration centre built in Albania with a billion euros investment; the cost of military ship journey wasn't made public

The oldest copy of St. Francis of Assisi’s Canticle of the Creatures, dating back to 1224, is on display in Rome's Museo di Roma until 6 January 2025 to mark the 800th anniversary of the composition, with 93 books and works from the Library in Assisi

'Parts', innovative App by students at Apple Academy of Federico II University in Naples, enables blind people to approach works of art exhibited in museums in a different way through mechanisms that allow them to form a more accurate model of the work