Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

CRIME

Italy condemns ‘cowardly’ knife attack in French city of Nice

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte condemned the attack that left three dead at a church in the southern French city of Nice on Thursday morning.

Published: 29 October 2020 11:54 CET
Italy condemns 'cowardly' knife attack in French city of Nice
French police and firefighters secure the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Nice following the attack on Thursday morning. Photo: AFP
“The cowardly attack… will not shake the common front defending the values of freedom and peace,” Conte posted on Twitter.
 
“Our convictions are stronger than fanaticism, hatred and terror.”
 
 
Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio also condemned the attack and voiced support for France.
 
“Italy expresses profound condolences for the barbarous Nice attack,” Di Maio tweeted. “We are close to the French people and to the pain of the families of the victims.”
 
“Italy repudiates all forms of extremism and remains at France's side in the fight against terrorism and all violent radicalism”.
 

French terrorism prosecutors opened an investigation after the attack at a church in the southern French city of Nice left at least three dead and several people injured.

 
 
The attack took place at the Notre-Dame church in the southern city of Nice around 9am on Thursday morning.
 
Local police detained the suspected attacker quickly after the event, Mayor Christian Estrosi said.
 
French terror prosecutors later confirmed that a terror probe had been opened following the knife attack.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

CRIME

‘Serious design flaw’: Ex-official says risk of Genoa bridge collapse was known

A former director of the group with ultimate responsibility for Italy's Genoa bridge has said it knew of the dangers eight years before the highway collapsed in 2018, killing 43 people.

Published: 23 May 2023 13:26 CEST
‘Serious design flaw’: Ex-official says risk of Genoa bridge collapse was known

In 2010 Gianni Mion was managing director of the Benetton family’s holding group, Edizione, which owned Autostrade per l’Italia (Aspi), the company paid by the state to manage the Morandi bridge.

“In a meeting between managers and executives, doubts arose about whether the Morandi bridge could remain standing, due to a serious design flaw,” Mion told a court in Genoa on Monday at a trial hearing.

READ ALSO: Genoa bridge collapse: 59 people to stand trial over disaster as operator settles

“I asked if there was a third party that certified the stability of the viaduct. They told me that we self-certified it. That answer terrified me,” he said, according to Italian news agency reports.

“Nobody thought, though, that it would collapse and we were reassured on that point. I didn’t say anything but I was worried. I didn’t do anything and that’s my big regret,” Mion was quoted as saying.

Nearly 60 defendants went on trial in Genoa in July last year, accused of manslaughter and undermining transport safety over the collapse of the bridge in the northwest Italian city.

The Morandi bridge gave way in torrential rain on August 14, 2018, sending dozens of vehicles and their passengers tumbling into the abyss.

Egle Possetti, who heads a committee of victims’ relatives, said it was “unacceptable” for someone of Mion’s position to have remained silent.

Egle Possetti (C), at the first hearing of the Morandi bridge collapse trial on 7 July, 2022.

Egle Possetti (C), at the first hearing of the Morandi bridge collapse trial on 7 July, 2022. Photo by Piero CRUCIATTI / AFP.

Those on trial include the general manager of Autostrade at the time, Giovanni Castellucci, and Antonino Galata, the former head of Spea, the engineering company in charge of maintenance.

Roberto Tomasi, who took over as general manager of Autostrade in 2019, told the court on Monday that “the level of network degradation was substantially worse than Spea’s inspections stated”.

READ ALSO: ‘The sadness is unending’: Italian families’ pain still raw ahead of Genoa bridge trial

He said Spea was not considered to be “reliable” and “the behaviour of some of its employees was unacceptable”.

Even though their former directors are on trial, Autostrade and Spea will escape the courts, thanks to an out-of-court settlement with the public prosecutor’s office, which provides for a payment of 29 million euros ($30 million) to the state.

SHOW COMMENTS