Front page
Record-breaking heatwave set to return to Alps as summer intensifies
Forecasters warn of dangerous heat returning to northern Italy and Trentino-Alto Adige after brief respite
Italy faces a new heatwave forecast to bring record-breaking temperatures from Wednesday onward, threatening Alpine regions with drought stress and heat-related strain.
Klara Hofer · NATIONAL
Italy arrests former intelligence officer over Russian espionage operation
Defense Ministry signals investigation reveals Moscow's stance toward Rome after military aid to Ukraine
Italian authorities have arrested two people, including a former member of the national intelligence services, for allegedly passing classified information to a Russian agent, in what the Defense Ministry describes as a window into Russia's true intentions toward Italy.
Davide Ruspoli · NATIONAL
Japan triples departure tax to curb overtourism; Italy watches foreign strategies
Tokyo's €23 levy signals shift toward managing visitor volume through pricing; Tuscan destinations assess demand-control alternatives
Japan has tripled its departure tax to ¥3,000 (roughly €20) as part of a direct strategy to address overtourism, offering a counterpoint to Italy's regulatory and infrastructure-based approaches.
Costanza Bardi · INTERNATIONAL
Stellantis brings Italian quadricycle to US market at $13,995
Fiat Topolino EV opens new segment as Italian carmaker bets on affordability in crowded EV landscape
Stellantis has opened US orders for the Fiat Topolino, a small electric quadricycle priced at $13,995, marking the Italian automaker's push into an unconventional vehicle category.
Lorenzo Ferraris · ECONOMY
Regional dispatches
Lake Como village fines tourists €200 for bare chests and swimwear in streets
Varenna's authorities impose dress code on walking areas, latest European resort to restrict casual tourist attire
Varenna, a fishing village on Lake Como, has begun fining tourists up to €200 for wandering shirtless or in swimwear, joining a growing list of European destinations attempting to regulate visitor behavior.
Rosaria Esposito
2030 Winter Olympics drops Nordic combined as French Alps host new events
IOC replaces 102-year-old sport with synchronized figure skating and freeride skiing; gender parity cited
The International Olympic Committee has cut Nordic combined from the 2030 Winter Olympics in the French Alps, replacing it with synchronized figure skating and freeride skiing to improve gender balance.
Camille Bréan
Lake Como village imposes fines on bare-chested tourists
Varenna's €200 penalty marks escalating clash between Alpine tourism and local order
Varenna, a fishing village on Lake Como in Lombardia, has begun fining tourists up to €200 for appearing shirtless or in swimwear outside designated beach areas, the latest in a pattern of Italian destinations attempting to manage visitor behaviour.
Beatrice Comolli
Lombardia's rice belt withers as summer drought tightens grip
Pavia province faces crop failure as early heat arrives in Europe's largest rice-growing region
Pavia province in southern Lombardia, home to Italy's most productive rice paddies, is confronting severe drought conditions as summer heat arrived weeks ahead of schedule, threatening yields and forcing growers to seek emergency irrigation solutions.
Beatrice Comolli
Lake Como village imposes fines on bare-chested tourists; Riviera faces overtourism reckoning
Varenna bans swimwear in streets as Italian coastal towns crack down on summer visitor conduct.
A fishing village on Lake Como has begun fining tourists up to €200 for wandering shirtless or in swimwear, reflecting a broader tension between Mediterranean destinations and the summer crowds they attract.
Marina Doria
Ancient yeast from Ötzi yields sourdough thousands of years old
Scientists harvest microbes from 5,300-year-old mummy to bake bread, reviving Alpine microbial heritage
Researchers have extracted yeast from the digestive tract of Ötzi the Iceman and used it to bake sourdough, bridging five millennia of Alpine food culture.
Klara Hofer
Lake Como village imposes fines on bare-chested tourists
Varenna's €200 penalty signals escalating clash between heritage preservation and mass summer tourism
A fishing village on Lake Como has begun fining tourists up to €200 for appearing shirtless or in swimwear in public spaces, the latest Italian destination to restrict visitor behaviour.
Tommaso Veronese
Italy braces for record heatwave as summer peaks
Northeastern regions face intensifying heat stress on agriculture, tourism infrastructure and lagoon water levels
After a brief respite, intense heat is forecast to return to Italy from Wednesday, with meteorologists warning of record-breaking temperatures that will strain agriculture, energy systems and urban infrastructure across the north.
Tommaso Veronese
Lake Como village fines bare-chested tourists; Adriatic braces for enforcement surge
Varenna's €200 fines signal rising tension between Mediterranean overtourism and local communities
Varenna, a fishing village on Lake Como, has begun fining tourists up to €200 for appearing shirtless or in swimwear, joining a widening pattern of Italian destinations imposing behavioural restrictions on visitors.
Sergio Madrussan
Vatican's excommunication of traditionalist bishops fractures Italian parishes
Rome-based Society of St. Pius X faces severest disciplinary action after defying papal authority on consecrations
The Vatican has excommunicated leaders and followers of an ultratraditionalist Catholic sect after the group consecrated bishops without papal consent, deepening a schism that touches parishes across Rome and central Italy.
Davide Ruspoli
Record heat returns to Abruzzo as forecasters warn of 'record-breaking' summer
After brief respite, sweltering temperatures set to intensify across central Italy and mountain highlands.
Italy braces for a new heatwave after a brief reprieve, with forecasters warning of record-breaking temperatures that will test infrastructure and strain the Apennine region's water and energy systems.
Marco Di Sante
Record heat returns to Italy as Molise braces for summer stress
New heatwave threatens already-parched southern agriculture as forecasters warn of 'record-breaking' conditions
Italy faces a fresh surge of extreme temperatures from Wednesday as meteorologists warn of record-breaking summer heat, intensifying pressure on southern farming regions already weakened by drought.
Antonio Petrella
Lake Como village imposes €200 fines on bare-chested tourists
Varenna's crackdown on swimwear in streets reflects broader Italian struggle with mass tourism decorum
A fishing village on Lake Como has begun fining tourists up to €200 for wandering shirtless or in swimwear, the latest Italian holiday destination to impose dress codes on visitors.
Antonio Petrella
Napoli hires Allegri to chase Serie A title after runner-up finish
Former Milan coach takes three-year deal to rebuild southern club's championship hopes
Napoli has appointed Massimiliano Allegri as head coach on a three-year contract, tasking the former AC Milan manager with lifting the club back to the Serie A summit after finishing second last season.
Rosaria Esposito
Lamborghini pivots to hybrid as Motor Valley hedges electrification bet
Sant'Agata maker reveals Urus SE Performante, signalling a turn away from full-electric push in the supercar heartland
Lamborghini has unveiled a plug-in hybrid performance SUV, marking a strategic retreat from the full-electric ambitions that have divided Motor Valley's manufacturers.
Giulia Benati
Matera eyes tourist conduct codes as Lake Como imposes dress fines
Southern heritage sites weigh enforcement as overtourism strains cultural destinations across Italy.
As a Lake Como village fines bare-chested tourists, Basilicata's Matera—once Europe's poorest town, now a UNESCO site and film capital—faces its own reckoning with mass tourism's cultural cost.
Pietro Lasorsa
Record heat returns to southern Italy as Basilicata braces for summer stress
Oil and gas region faces dual pressure: agricultural drought and cooling demand spike during peak energy transition.
A new heatwave is forecast to grip Italy from Wednesday, with record-breaking temperatures expected to strain the South's agriculture and test Basilicata's energy infrastructure at a critical moment in the transition away from fossil fuels.
Pietro Lasorsa
Record heat returns to Italy as summer drought threatens southern agriculture
Calabria's citrus and bergamot crops face critical stress as forecasters warn of another heatwave
After a brief respite, Italy faces a new heatwave from Wednesday, with forecasters warning of record-breaking temperatures that threaten the country's agricultural heartland and the Mediterranean South.
Saverio Gallo
Catania airport reopens after three-day Etna closure
Volcanic ash from Europe's largest active volcano disrupts southern Sicily's transport hub
Flights resumed at Sicily's main airport on Tuesday after Mount Etna's eruption grounded aircraft and scattered ash across the region.
Concetta Vassallo
Lake Como village imposes fines on bare-chested tourists in decorum crackdown
Varenna's €200 fine signals growing tension between coastal tourism and local order across Mediterranean Italy
Varenna, a fishing village on Lake Como, has begun fining tourists up to €200 for wandering shirtless or in swimwear, joining other Italian destinations struggling to manage the volume and behaviour of summer visitors.
Gavino Sanna
Trump says he was testing NATO allies; Italy among those who declined Iran operation
US President's latest remarks on alliance cohesion come ahead of NATO summit as bilateral tensions with Rome persist
President Trump said during talks with Turkey that he was testing NATO members' willingness to join an Iran operation, claiming Italy, Germany and France declined.
Adriana Sole
Italy arrests former secret service agent on charges of spying for Russia
Two detained in operation targeting alleged intelligence breach; arrest signals Rome's concern over foreign espionage amid NATO tensions
Italian police arrested a former member of the national intelligence community and another person on Tuesday on charges of spying for Russia.
Adriana Sole
Leclerc wins chaotic British Grand Prix as safety car denies dramatic finish
Ferrari driver claims victory at Silverstone but controversy looms over race-ending incident that robbed fans of potential thriller
Charles Leclerc won the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, but the race ended under the safety car in circumstances that the Guardian says threaten to send Formula 1 back to the drawing board on its rules.
Tobia Marenghi
Moritz de Hadeln, Festival Architect, Dies at 85
Berlin, Venice and Locarno lost a visionary who shaped European cinema's premier stages
Moritz de Hadeln, the German-born impresario who directed the Berlin, Venice and Locarno Film Festivals and reshaped how Europe's major cinema events operated, has died.
Eleonora Vanzetti
Holy See Takes Centre Stage at Venice Biennale Through Sound and Spirituality
Soundwalk Collective's experimental pavilion explores the Vatican's cultural voice at 2026 edition
The Holy See is represented at the 61st Venice Biennale by Soundwalk Collective, an artist collective using sound and spatial experience to articulate Vatican perspectives within the world's premier contemporary art exhibition.
Eleonora Vanzetti
Record heatwave returns to Italy as Adriatic coast faces climate test
After brief respite, scorching temperatures forecast to break records again, with southern regions bracing for strain on agriculture and tourism
Italy is braced for a new heatwave beginning Wednesday, with forecasters warning of record-breaking temperatures as the country's summer heat intensifies.
Francesca Lazzari
Lake Como village imposes fines for bare chests, swimwear in streets
Varenna joins Italian resorts cracking down on casual tourist dress; Tuscany watches overtourism management tactics spread
The fishing village of Varenna on Lake Como has begun fining tourists up to €200 for wandering its streets shirtless or in swimwear, the latest Italian destination to impose decorum rules on visitors.
Costanza Bardi
Umbria's farms brace for record heat as summer heatwave returns
Agricultural region faces renewed strain as forecasters warn of 'record-breaking' temperatures across Italy
As Italy braces for a new heatwave, Umbria's farmers confront intensifying heat stress on crops and livestock in a region already strained by earlier summer extremes.
Niccolò Mariani
Four Seasons orders third luxury yacht from Ancona shipyard
Fincantieri secures new contract as cruise market targets smaller Mediterranean ports
Four Seasons Yacht has ordered a third ship from Fincantieri's Ancona yard, signalling continued confidence in Italy's shipbuilding capacity as luxury cruise lines reshape Mediterranean itineraries.
Elena Marcheggiani
Opinion
Italy's courts and the persistence of sexist law
The European court orders Italy to compensate a woman whose rape allegations were dismissed as normal. The ruling exposes how language in the courtroom can itself become an instrument of harm.
Editorial Board
When a village fines bare skin, what is really being policed?
Varenna's €200 fine for shirtless tourists raises a question about who gets to define civility in spaces shaped by tourism itself.
Editorial Board