Italy: How EU subsidies end up in the Sicilian mafia's pockets

The European Commission says eight member states are at risk of breaching the bloc's tough public spending rules next year. It wants surplus-running countries such as Germany and the Netherlands to spend more.

Two priests convicted of sexually abusing deaf children have been sentenced to at least 40 years in prison. One was previously accused of abuse in Italy but was not sanctioned by the Vatican.

The city of Milan, Italy, runs a programme each year aimed at training school girls to be better prepared for the 21st century's workplace. Speaking to Bloomberg's Annmarie Hordern, the city's Deputy Mayor Roberta Cocco said that gender gap is still a big issue in the country.

With a lush green backdrop, Italian fashion house Dolce & Gabbana took fashionistas on a jungle trek at its catwalk show on Sunday (September 22), presenting a spring wardrobe inspired by colourful tropical fauna and flora.

In Italy, there is a last-ditch bid to carve out a viable majority in parliament after a rocky day of negotiations between Five Star and the Democratic Party yesterday. We’ve learned that the Democrats now are willing to accept Giuseppe Conte’s return as prime minister but some sticking points remain.

Italy's next government faces tough economic challenges

A snap election hangs in the balance as President Sergio Mattarella has agreed to meet party leaders again next week. Squabbling has beset Europe's third-largest economy and plunged the government into a crisis.

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte will stay on after all, after Italy's Five Star Movement made a deal with the center-left Democratic Party. The far-right Lega had forced a crisis by pulling out of the last coalition.

Italy is marking one year since the collapse of the Morandi Bridge in Genoa, which killed 43 people and left some 600 homeless. The cause of the disaster has still not been determined. Last June, the ruins of the bridge were demolished to make way for a new structure, but for those affected by the tragedy, the future remains uncertain.

Interior Minister Matteo Salvini and his League's coalition with the 5-Star movement was only ever a means to an end. His inexorable rise to the top spells more bad news for Italy and the EU, says DW's Barbara Wesel.

Germany, France, Italy, Britain and the United States are seeking compromise over tensions between Serbia and Kosovo. Both are seeking EU accession.