Facebook Twitter Pinterest Giulio Regeni?s murder has come to be seen as symbolic of Egypt?s high number of forced disappearances. Who murdered Giulio Regeni? Facebook Twitter Pinterest A candlelight vigil For Giulio Regeni In Rome. A senior US government official who served under Barack Obama said the Regeni murder had ?severely damaged the relationship? between Egypt and Italy. | Alexander Stille Read moreIndependent efforts by the Regeni family to demand answers have been met with silence.

Renzi, leader of the centre-left Democratic party, is also keen for an early election in which he may perform better than the ballot scheduled for Spring 2018. ?The consensus among political players is to have an election in spring 2018; there is no appetite for an early vote other than from Renzi,? he said. Italy?s highest court has opened the way for early elections in 2017 after favouring a form of proportional representation in a ruling that could bolster former prime minister Matteo Renzi?s chances of making a comeback. He said the referendum defeat hurt, but stressed that the blog was a way to ?walk towards the future?. The law had been a cornerstone of Renzi?s broader reform plan and one he hoped would end decades of political instability.

Story highlights Reports: Prosecutors launch probe after hotel director asked authorities to interveneDeath toll at Rigopiano Hotel reaches 14 dead, with 15 people still missing(CNN) With 14 people now dead after an avalanche wrecked an Italian hotel, news reports emerged that its director urgently called for assistance just hours before disaster struck last week. In an email to local officials, the director said guests at the Rigopiano Hotel were "terrified," roads were blocked due to heavy snow and phones were out of service. The recovery brought the death toll to 14, according to Italy`s national fire brigade, with 15 still missing. Prosecutors investigating the disaster are now examining his call for help. The Reuters news agency reported Tuesday that rescuers recovered five bodies -- three men and two women -- hours before the first funerals for those killed were due to be held.

The hotel is located around 40 miles from the helicopter crash site, on the other side of the Gran Sasso mountain. Story highlights Rescue helicopter was transporting an injured skier in the central Italian mountainsTwo police officers, three medics and the skier were all killed(CNN) An emergency helicopter crashed in the mountains of central Italy Tuesday, killing at least six people. Two members of the Guardia di Finanzia police, three medical personnel and the injured skier were killed. The crash near the ski resort of Campo Felice in the province of L`Aquila happened during an operation to rescue an injured skier, according to the Prefecture of L`Aquila. The crash took place around 12:15pm at an altitude of 600 meters and was caused by bad weather, according to the Prefecture.

The group, which brings together France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus and Malta, was reminded this week of their economic vulnerabilities as bond yields surged to one-year highs in Italy, Portugal and France. LISBON Southern European leaders meet on Saturday in Lisbon to discuss growing challenges, from the refugee crisis to rising borrowing costs and low economic growth, at a time when rising populism has increased political uncertainty in Europe. Greece, Italy and Portugal have the biggest debt loads in Europe. At the first meeting of the group in September in Athens, the group called for European measures to boost flagging growth. "But there will be little progress on these issues because of elections in France and probably Italy," he said.