Rome

Read recent news stories and current events about Rome, Italy on Newser.com

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After Tunnel Collapses, Alleged Thieves Call Cops

Firefighters worked for 8 hours to free a man, later arrested, from tunnel below Rome

(Newser) - A man rescued from a tunnel 20 feet beneath the streets of Rome may have suffered the consequences of his own attempted bank robbery. One of three alleged gang members who escaped the tunnel when it collapsed below the surface of a road near the Vatican on Thursday called for...

'Completely Drunk' US Tourists Damage Rome Landmark

Woman was seen shoving electric scooter down Spanish Steps

(Newser) - This has been a rough year for Rome's iconic Spanish Steps. Authorities say two American tourists caused $27,000 in damage by pushing and dragging electric scooters down them, Business Insider reports. The pair, a 29-year-old man and a 28-year-old woman, were seen on the marble steps in the...

Driver Took Rented Maserati Down Spanish Steps: Police

Saudi national faces charge over damage to Rome landmark

(Newser) - A Saudi national has been charged after police said he drove his rental car down Rome's Spanish Steps, causing damage to the city landmark. Police said the 37-year-old man, whom they did not identify, took a Maserati down the steps this week; surveillance video shows the driver stopping after...

Wild Boars Are Holding Rome Residents 'Hostage'

Some neighborhoods have introduced curfews

(Newser) - Rome is being overrun not by Visigoths, but by wild boar. The animals have been considered a nuisance in the Italian capital for years, but unpleasant encounters between boar and Romans appear to be on the rise, the Guardian reports. After a spate of attacks, including one in which a...

You Can Now Get Paid to Get Married in Italy

New initiative will refund couples $2,250 for Lazio-based wedding services in 2022

(Newser) - The coronavirus pandemic has put a real damper on the wedding and tourism industries. But Italy is fighting back with a new $11 million initiative that aims to boost both industries while possibly funding your wedding. Any couple—Italian or foreign—who opt to marry or begin a civil union...

Terrorists' Note on Doomed PM's Kidnapping Sells for Big Bucks

1978 letter from Italy's Red Brigades blew past auction estimate, goes for $29K

(Newser) - A 1978 note announcing the abduction of a former Italian prime minister by the group that would later kill him has sold for 15 times the estimate at a controversial auction in Rome. The two-sided letter from communist guerrilla group Red Brigades, written on the group's letterhead, was the...

Texas-Born Princess Tries, Fails to Sell an Opulent Villa

There were no takers for Villa Aurora at $400M

(Newser) - Texas-born Princess Rita Boncompagni Ludovisi is having a hard time unloading a 16th-century Italian villa loaded with countless priceless pieces of art and appraised at $533 million—despite a price tag far lower. A court-ordered auction of the "Villa Aurora" estate in Rome failed to draw any bids on...

US Tourists Pick Wrong Place to Have 5:30am Beer in Rome

The Colosseum is neither a bar, nor open at that hour

(Newser) - Two American tourists, chatting over a beer in Rome. Unremarkable. That it happened at 5:30am is a little odder. That they allegedly broke into the Colosseum and threw one back there is downright strange—and, as you might imagine, illegal. The Guardian reports the 24- and 25-year-old men were...

Biden Concedes 'Clumsy' Handling of Deal to Macron

Leaders meet for the first time since security alliance left France in the cold

(Newser) - Meeting with President Emmanuel Macron for the first time since a weapons deal with Australia caused a US-France rift , President Biden said the situation was mishandled by his administration. "It was not done with a lot of grace," Biden said in an appearance with Macron on Friday. France...

Pope 'Gave Hope' to Rome's Prisoners With Ice Cream

Vatican says 15K ice creams were delivered to 2 prisons

(Newser) - Italy may have broken the record for the hottest temperature ever logged in Europe—and amid the sweltering heat, Pope Francis made a gesture that's quite literally cool. A statement from the Vatican said that 15,000 ice creams were sent to prisoners in Rome. Reuters reports the "...

Ancient Roman Boundary Marker Found at Dig

This pomerial stone marked the city limits and dates from 49 AD

(Newser) - Archaeologists have discovered a rare stone delineating the city limits of ancient Rome that dates from the age of Emperor Claudius in 49 A.D. and was found during excavations for a new sewage system. Rome Mayor Virginia Raggi was on hand for the unveiling Friday of the pomerial stone,...

Tourists Can Visit Gladiators' Underground Chambers

The amphitheater's 'backstage' is restored and open

(Newser) - You can get backstage passes to the Colosseum in Rome, now. The giant landmark, also known as the Flavian Amphitheater, has been undergoing renovations for years now with the help of an Italian fashion brand, and the latest project has been to make the hypogeum more accessible to the public....

Screams Rise From Rome's Streets as Crows Attack

Pedestrians carry umbrellas or sticks, or stay inside

(Newser) - Strolling through the streets of Rome takes on an added element of danger every spring, when carrion crows guarding their chicks swoop down to attack passing humans, regarding them as a danger. Humans return the sentiment. The crows "are everywhere," one woman said after being attacked by a...

Critics on Colosseum Overhaul: 'Italy Seen Via Las Vegas'

High-tech $18M stage will cover up structure's subterranean chambers, offering a 'gladiator's view'

(Newser) - If you're one of the millions who've converged upon the Colosseum in Rome, your past visits likely included wandering around the seating area and peering down into the underground chambers. In a couple of years, tourists there will have the chance to participate in a new activity: taking...

Off-Duty Cops Antiquing in Brussels Make Quite a Find

Roman statue worth $120K had been stolen from Italy nearly a decade ago

(Newser) - Two Italian police officers on assignment in Belgium were exploring some of Brussels' antique shops after work when they discovered a $120,000 Roman statue, stolen from Italy nearly a decade ago. The statue of a headless Roman in a draped toga struck the men as suspicious. As members of...

Rome Museum Receives Apology From US Tourist

She confessed to swiping ancient Roman marble 3 years ago

(Newser) - A Canadian woman who returned artifacts swiped from Pompeii after experiencing terrible luck may have started a trend. The National Roman Museum says it recently received a chunk of ancient marble in a package sent from Atlanta, Georgia, along with a note in which a woman apologized for being an...

Mob Allegedly Plotted to Kill Mayor, Her Family

Virginia Raggi says she's become a target of organized crime

(Newser) - The mayor of Rome announced Monday that the mob was plotting to kill her and her family, Reuters reports. Virginia Raggi said in a pre-recorded TV interview that she has been fighting powerful organized crime families that operate in the city, and that the Casamonica family targeted her after she...

A 'Historic First' From Pope, With No One There to See It

Francis offered rare blessing to an empty St. Peter's Square, calling coronavirus a 'tempest'

(Newser) - The "Urbi et Orbi" ("To the City and the World") prayer recited by the pope is typically only offered on three occasions: on Christmas, on Easter, and when a new pontiff is chosen. On Friday, however, Pope Francis climbed the steps of St. Peter's Basilica in...

Pope Turns Palace Into Homeless Shelter

Vatican-owned building is now a 'palace for the poor'

(Newser) - Pope Francis is practicing what he preaches in Rome, where a 19th-century palace owned by the Vatican has been turned into a homeless shelter. The pontiff rejected plans to convert the Palazza Migliori, which is just off St. Peter's Square, into a luxury hotel for Vatican visitors, reports the...

'Please, No Sitting': Rome Now Enforcing New Ban

Visitors can no longer sit on the famed Spanish Steps

(Newser) - Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn perched there without a care in the 1953 film Roman Holiday. But the Spanish Steps in Rome are no longer a place for sitting. Enforcing an ordinance that took effect last month, police officers patrolled the famed stone staircase Wednesday to tell locals and visitors...

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