Italy is poised to elect its first far-right leader since the Second World War in a general election on Sunday, an outcome that could shake up the European Union and pile pressure on its leaders to get tougher on migration.
Giorgia Meloni and her Brothers of Italy party are the overwhelming favourites to win the election and form a right-wing coalition with Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia party and Matteo Salvini’s anti-immigrant League.
Ms Meloni, 45, would be Italy’s first female prime minister and has positioned herself as a fresh face after keeping her party out of Mario Draghi’s unity government, the latest in a long line of fragile Italian coalitions.
Although her platform includes the familiar populist themes of immigration, patriotism and traditional family values, Ms Meloni’s pro-Ukraine stance in the war with Russia sets her apart from some of her fellow nationalists in Europe.
But despite her efforts to distance herself from the party’s neo-fascist heritage, there is much concern in Europe that Ms Meloni will damage Italy’s standing and give nationalist leaders such as Hungary’s Viktor Orban a weighty ally in the EU.
One of her most eye-catching ideas is a “naval blockade” to stop the flow of migrants across the Mediterranean, a sensitive issue on which the right-wing alliance is promising a hard-line approach.
Once in power, the parties are expected to lobby Italy’s EU neighbours to take in more of the Mediterranean migrants and tell Brussels to set up reception centres outside Europe’s borders to head off asylum claims at the pass.
“Immigration has to be managed, to protect those who play host to immigrants and those who really need us to welcome them,” Ms Meloni said during one of her last campaign stops in Rome.
For Ivan Fadini, a co-founder of the International Napoli Network, which recruits volunteers for migration charities in Naples, Italy’s populist leaders are inventing the threat posed by migrants and refugees in the country.
“There is no invasion of migrants,” said Mr Fadini. People from North Africa were the victims of poor working conditions, low pay and excessive bureaucracy that made it harder for them to integrate in Italy, he said.
“When they talk about a security alert for terrorism because radical Muslims could come who do terrorist attacks to our cities — let me stress that Italy never had a serious terrorist attack from Muslims,” he said.
“There is fake news about the numbers. And there is fake news also about the budget that Italy has to have to assist asylum seekers or refugees.”
Meloni's rise
The Brothers of Italy, who take their name from the opening words of the national anthem, are the latest party to shake up Italy’s complex political landscape after rising from 4.4 per cent of the vote at the last election to lead the polls this time around.
While Brothers of Italy posters are plastered with her smiling face, Ms Meloni is known for her bellowing speeches, most notably a viral 2019 monologue in which she cried: “I am Giorgia, I am a woman, I am a mother, I am an Italian, I am a Christian.”
Ms Meloni’s party “has ambivalent stances when it comes to symbolic references to the fascist legacy in Italy, and it embraces a world vision that is grounded in nativism and authoritarianism and populism”, said political scientist Caterina Froio.
The two potential coalition partners, Mr Berlusconi and Mr Salvini, are experienced operators with big egos but both have said they would support Ms Meloni despite suggestions they might struggle to maintain a united front.
Both men helped to bring down Mr Draghi’s government in July, after an 18-month spell in office in which he was praised for a steady hand that helped Italy get its hands on about €200 billion ($197bn) of Covid-19 recovery funding from the EU.
But Ms Meloni has tapped into a desire for change after a succession of makeshift governments with questionable democratic mandates, including Mr Draghi’s, steered Italy through a decade of crises.
“While Mario Draghi managed to bring together most other political parties, she [Ms Meloni] resolutely stuck to the opposition,” said Ms Froio at an event hosted by the Swedish Institute for European Policy Studies.
A shift to the right is likely after the main centre-left party, the Democratic Party (PD), failed to agree a common platform with either the radical left or the amorphous Five Star Movement — virtually ensuring its defeat in a system that favours coalitions.
Enrico Letta, the bespectacled PD leader, himself a former prime minister, bemoaned Ms Meloni’s outreach to the Orban government in Hungary, the mischief maker-in-chief in EU discussions over Ukraine and a regime accused of eroding democratic freedom.
“Italy’s vote will influence the future of the whole of Europe,” Mr Letta said on a visit to Berlin to speak to Germany’s Social Democrats, a sister party of the PD.
Ms Meloni has tried to shed any sense of isolationism by saying she wants Italy to be more of a “protagonist” in world affairs. Mr Salvini, in turn, is a sceptic of sanctions on Russia and Mr Berlusconi was once a close friend of Vladimir Putin.
The euro slid to a 20-year low on Friday as the Italian election added to market concerns. Investors “will be looking nervously to the new government” for signs that fiscal restraint will be abandoned, said analysts at investment bank ING.
A renewed tug-of-war with Brussels over migration would add to the EU’s headaches after years of stalemate on the issue, while an agreement with Libyan coastguards to control migration has been marred by reports of human rights abuse.
In the meantime, the real problems faced by migrants on the ground may go ignored, fears Mr Fadini, who said that even good work by NGOs in Naples, helping people to receive shelter, food and Italian lessons, can only take place within the parameters set in Rome.
While children born in Italy struggle to obtain citizenship because their parents were irregular migrants, as Mr Fadini described it, Ms Meloni preferred to stir up outrage by publishing footage of the alleged rape of a woman by a Guinean asylum seeker.
“She could be the first woman to be come prime minister in Italy and I don’t know why she doesn’t have more empathy for other women,” Mr Fadini said.
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
'Panga'
Directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Starring Kangana Ranaut, Richa Chadha, Jassie Gill, Yagya Bhasin, Neena Gupta
Rating: 3.5/5
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 4 (Gundogan 8' (P), Bernardo Silva 19', Jesus 72', 75')
Fulham 0
Red cards: Tim Ream (Fulham)
Man of the Match: Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
UAE players with central contracts
Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Rameez Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Adnan Mufti, Mohammed Usman, Ghulam Shabbir, Ahmed Raza, Qadeer Ahmed, Amir Hayat, Mohammed Naveed and Imran Haider.
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
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Match info
Bournemouth 0
Liverpool 4 (Salah 25', 48', 76', Cook 68' OG)
Man of the match: Andrew Robertson (Liverpool)
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
RESULT
Los Angeles Galaxy 2 Manchester United 5
Galaxy: Dos Santos (79', 88')
United: Rashford (2', 20'), Fellaini (26'), Mkhitaryan (67'), Martial (72')
Quick facts on cancer
- Cancer is the second-leading cause of death worldwide, after cardiovascular diseases
- About one in five men and one in six women will develop cancer in their lifetime
- By 2040, global cancer cases are on track to reach 30 million
- 70 per cent of cancer deaths occur in low and middle-income countries
- This rate is expected to increase to 75 per cent by 2030
- At least one third of common cancers are preventable
- Genetic mutations play a role in 5 per cent to 10 per cent of cancers
- Up to 3.7 million lives could be saved annually by implementing the right health
strategies
- The total annual economic cost of cancer is $1.16 trillion
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Race card
5.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,400m
6.05pm: Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (T) 1,400m
6.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 1,200m
7.50pm: Longines Stakes – Conditions (TB) Dh120,00 (D) 1,900m
8.25pm: Zabeel Trophy – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (T) 1,600m
9pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 2,410m
9.35pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 2,000m
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Opening Premier League fixtures, August 14
- Brentford v Arsenal
- Burnley v Brighton
- Chelsea v Crystal Palace
- Everton v Southampton
- Leicester City v Wolves
- Manchester United v Leeds United
- Newcastle United v West Ham United
- Norwich City v Liverpool
- Tottenham v Manchester City
- Watford v Aston Villa
