Italy

At least seven people have now died after the blast destroyed four residential buildings on Saturday evening in the Sicilian town of Ravanusa.

Firefighters say they are continuing to search the rubble for two people still said to be missing.

Another 100 people have had to leave their homes because of the explosion.

Authorities said four houses had collapsed and another three were damaged during the blast, which was heard as far as four miles (6km) away.

Many public activities will be off limits to anyone without a so-called Covid Super Green Pass from Monday.

The pass shows proof of vaccination, or recovery from the virus within the last six months.

It will be needed to enter theatres, cinemas, music venues, sports events, restaurants and bars until mid-January.

The new measures strengthen the existing Covid green passes, which can be obtained following a negative test. The basic green passes will now be required to use public transport, as well as to access places of work.

The Azzurri and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal both finished second in their qualifying groups, behind Switzerland and Serbia respectively.

Italy will host North Macedonia in the play-off first round in March, with Turkey visiting Portugal, before the winners face off for a spot at next year’s finals in Qatar.

The draw means that one of the last two European Championship winners will not be at the next World Cup. Portugal won the Euro 2016 title.

The winners of Portugal’s match with Turkey will host the final-round game in Path C.

Regional authorities reported the reading, which needs to be verified by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), near Syracuse on Wednesday.

According to the WMO, the current official record in Europe is 48C, registered in Athens, Greece, in 1977.

The latest heatwave in Italy is being caused by an anticyclone - nicknamed Lucifer - moving up from Africa.

Anticyclones are areas of high atmospheric pressure where the air is sinking.

Lucifer is forecast to head north across mainland Italy, further raising temperatures in cities including the capital, Rome.

Named Alex, the storm brought fierce winds and torrential rain.

A number of villages north of Nice in France suffered serious damage from floods and landslides, with roads, bridges and homes destroyed.

In north-western Italy, flooding was described as "historic". A section of a bridge over the Sesia river collapsed.

French Prime Minister Jean Castex has deployed the army and released emergency funds to tackle the worst floods for decades in south-eastern France.

Up to 20 people are either missing or have not checked in with relatives.

It reported 243 new fatalities on Friday - down from 274 the day before - taking the total to 30,201.

The daily number of confirmed new cases fell slightly to 1,327, bringing the total number of infections to 217,185.

Restrictions have begun to ease around the county, but one doctor described the city of Milan as a time "bomb," according to local media.

Italy has the third highest number of officially recorded coronavirus deaths in the world, after the United States and the UK - which is no longer a member of the EU.

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said curbs would be eased from 4 May, with people being allowed to visit their relatives in small numbers, in masks.

Parks will reopen, but schools will not restart classes until September.

Italy has reported 26,644 virus-related deaths, Europe's highest official toll.

The country recorded 260 new deaths on Sunday, the lowest daily figure since 14 March. It has confirmed 197,675 cases of the virus, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, which is tracking the disease globally.

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said that people would only be permitted to travel for work or family emergencies.

He said the measures, which come into effect on Tuesday, were to defend the most fragile members of society.

Italy's coronavirus death toll jumped on Monday by 97 to 463. It is the worst-hit country after China.

The number of confirmed infections also increased to 9,172, up from 7,375 on Sunday, official figures show.

Cases of the virus have been confirmed in all 20 Italian regions.

Officials said 49 people had died in 24 hours, while more than 4,600 cases have been reported in total.

The country has now reported the most deaths outside of China, where the virus emerged in December.

The World Health Organization says nearly 100,000 people worldwide have contracted the coronavirus.

More than 3,000 people have died - the majority in China.

WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called the spread of the virus "deeply concerning" and urged all countries to make containment "their highest priority".

The rise in Italy, the main focus of infection in Europe, represents a 25% surge in 24 hours.

Several European countries announced new cases traced to Italy.

Also on Wednesday, the World Health Organization said that for the first time the virus was spreading faster outside China, where it originated.

Globally, more than 80,000 people in about 40 countries have been infected with the new coronavirus, which emerged in December. The vast majority remain in China.

Covid-19, the respiratory disease caused by the virus, has killed more than 2,700 people so far.