The 31-year-old was discovered hours before his team were scheduled to play Udinese in a Serie A match. He is believed to have died from a cardiac arrest.

His team-mates were pictured arriving at the Santa Croce church in Florence ahead of the service, which began at 10am in Italy, while thousands of fans lined the streets and filled one of the main squares, some arriving as early as three hours before the funeral started.

They lit flares which formed a moving backdrop of purple smoke as his coffin was carried out after the service, which lasted for almost two hours.

        

Astori died in his sleep at the team hotel – he leaves behind partner, Francesca Fioretti, and their two-year-old daughter

As soon as the coffin was brought back out, the people in the square again raised their scarves, sang the Fiorentina anthem and chanted Astori’s name as well as ‘c’e solo un capitano’ (there’s only one captain).

Astori’s mother blew a kiss to the crowd, while the people of Florence were also thanked by his brother Marco in his eulogy.

Earlier, fans gathered by Fiorentina’s Artemio Franchi stadium and applauded loudly as Astori’s coffin was driven past. There were shouts of his name and ‘grande capitano’ (great captain), while a banner held up read: ‘Per sempre nostro capitano (forever our captain)’.

Astori, who played for Italy 14 times, leaves behind his long-term partner, Francesca Fioretti, and their two-year-old daughter. A tearful Fioretti was seen making her way into the church on Thursday morning with Astori’s family, including their daughter, Vittoria.

The Fiorentina players were met with applause when they arrived on foot, led by midfielder Milan Badelj.

‘You are the brother or the son that everyone would have wanted to have,’ Badelj said. ‘Your parents didn’t make any mistake with you, not even the tiniest bit. You’re not like others, you are football, the real one, the pure one of children.

‘Our thoughts go out to your mother and your father, to your brothers, to Francesca and to Princess Vicky. You were a man with a capital M and we will tell her. You are the light for all of us.’

Gianluigi Buffon and his Juventus team flew back from London especially for the service following the Champions League victory over Tottenham on Wednesday night.

Defender Giorgio Chiellini was visibly emotional as he made his way into church. The 33-year-old, who played at Wembley for Juve on Wednesday night, admitted afterwards that he had ‘cried many times’ since learning of Astori’s passing.

‘Tomorrow we go to give the last ‘Ciao’ together without team-mates,’ Chiellini said.

Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah, a team-mate of Astori at Roma, was also there, according to reports in Italy.

Venezia coach Filippo Inzaghi – best known in Italian football for his time as a player at AC Milan – was seen arriving while Inter Milan manager Luciano Spalletti led his side into the church.

Marco van Basten, Francesco Totti and Daniele De Rossi were other notable names who were there to remember Astori.

Astori started his playing career in the Milan youth academy but never played a senior match for the Rossoneri, making his Serie A debut with Cagliari in 2008.

He spent six years at the Sardinian club before loan spells at Roma and Fiorentina, where he was signed on a permanent basis in 2016.

Fiorentina and Cagliari, Astori’s club between 2008 and 2016, announced on Tuesday that they had retired the No 13 shirt in honour of their former player.

Fiorentina tweeted: ‘In honour of Davide Astori’s memory, Cagliari and Fiorentina have decided to retire the No 13 shirt.’

Cagliari, having changed their Twitter handle to ‘Ciao Davide’, added: ‘To honour their memory and make indelible the memory of David Astori, @acffiorentina and @CagliariCalcio have decided to jointly withdraw the jersey with the number 13.’

Fiorentina announced on Sunday morning that Astori had died following a ‘sudden illness’. All of Sunday’s Serie A fixtures were postponed and a day later, prosecutors opened a culpable homicide case over his death.

The chief prosecutor in Udine, Antonio De Nicolo, said on Monday that a culpable homicide case — which in Britain is known as manslaughter — would be opened, but that it was a formality at this stage and that ‘no one has a responsibility for anything’.

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This was made known on Tuesday, 28th November, 2017, when the Italian Prime Minister, Paolo Gentiloni, paid a courtesy call on the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, as part of a day’s working visit to Ghana.

Addressing a joint press conference at the Presidency, President Akufo-Addo noted that, relations between Ghana and Italy dates several years, recalling the involvement of Italian companies in the construction of the Akosombo dam, Kpone dam, and the Tema Oil Refinery.

President Akufo-Addo noted that, subsequent visits to Italy by former Presidents J.A. Kufuor and John Mahama, “really broke the barriers of allowing us to even establish even stronger links.”

The President noted that, the arrival of Paolo Gentiloni “is within the context of this strong relationship that is between our two countries.”

Touching on the many areas of Ghana’s national life where Italian involvement has been important, President Akufo-Addo acknowledged the support given to the Kofi Annan Peace Keeping Training Centre by the Italian government.

“The training and investment between our countries is modest, but it is important, and the biggest investment in our nation for over a decade is that which has been made by the Italian state owned petroleum company ENI,” the President said.

He said, “The ENI investment is extremely important for the future of our country, not only in developing our oil deposits, but also perhaps even more significantly, in the gas resources that are going to be developed by them.”

The involvement of ENI, the President acknowledged, “gives us the opportunity to become increasingly self-sufficient in our energy generation. We are looking forward for greater intercourse with ENI that would allow us to go into other areas of the energy portfolio.”

On the impending 5th AU-EU summit, which will take place in Cote d’Ivoire from Wednesday, 29th November, President Akufo-Addo was hopeful that the Summit would define more concretely the relationship between the two continents.

“Looking at issues of common concern, the development of our economy, the issue of migration, issues of terrorism that confront both our continents, it is my expectation and hope that both Ghana and Italy will play very constructive roles in defining this new understanding, this new relationship between Europe and Africa,” the President added.

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By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Conte left the job for Chelsea after Euro 2016, but replacement Giampiero Ventura was sacked after Italy lost to Sweden in the World Cup play-off.

“[Massimiliano] Allegri, [Roberto] Mancini, [Carlo] Ancelotti… I say getting warmer,” Tavecchio told Gazzetta Dello Sport.

“And Conte? Fire.”

Juventus boss Allegri has said he wants to be Italy boss one day but “not at this moment” and while former Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini is the Zenit St Petersburg boss, Carlo Ancelotti is available after being sacked by Bayern Munich.

Former Juventus boss Conte guided Chelsea to the Premier League title last season after leaving Italy, who he led to the Euro 2016 quarter-finals.

However there are regular reports that he is not happy at Stamford Bridge.

Tavecchio blamed former Torino boss Ventura for the Azzurri’s failure to reach a World Cup for the first time since 1958.

“It is all the fault of Ventura, he chose the staff, he has done all of it. We as a federation have never interfered.”

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Source: BBC

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Valentino Talluto is said to have had unprotected sex with at least 53 women after his HIV diagnosis in 2006, the youngest of whom was 14 at the relationship’s start.

The accountant, using the pseudonym “Hearty Style”, went on social networks and dating sites to find his victims.

On Friday, judges sentenced the 33-year-old to 24 years in prison.

Talluto’s defence lawyers had argued their client’s actions were “imprudent, but not intentional”.

However, those who asked him to wear a condom were told he was either allergic, or had recently been tested for HIV, news agency AFP reported.

When some of the women confronted him after discovering they were infected, he denied he was a carrier of the potentially deadly virus, which can lead to Aids.

As a result of his actions, another four people contracted the virus on top of the women he directly infected: three men and one baby.

Prosecutor Elena Neri told the court last month: “His actions were intended to sow death.”

However, Talluto – whose mother was an HIV-infected drug addict who died when he was four – told the court if that had been the case, he would not have gone to the effort of having actual relationships.

“Many of the girls know my friends and family,” he said. “They say that I wanted to infect as many people as possible. If that had been the case, I would have gone for casual sex in bars, I would not have brought them into my life.”

Judges in Rome deliberated over the sentence for more than 10 hours before announcing the verdict.

According to local media, victims wept as the sentence was read out. However, it fell short of the life term prosecutors had asked for.

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Source: BBC

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Whereas the telecommunication companies charge between GHp0.21 to GHc0.96 every minute for calls to Nigeria, they charge comparatively lower [between GHp0.12 to GHc0.21] for calls to the aforementioned countries.

The telecommunications companies also charge an average of GHp0.1620 per minute for calls to China and Canada.

This is according to data published by the National Communications Authority (NCA).

For calls to Nigeria, MTN according to the report charges the highest of GHp0.96, followed by Tigo, Airtel, Vodafone, Glo and Expresso in descending order.

On the flip side, MTN charges the lowest tariff from calls placed to the USA and China followed by Glo, Airtel, Vodafone, Tigo and Expresso with GHpp0.21 in descending order.

Comparatively, it is expensive placing calls to the United Kingdom and Italy from Ghana.

The local telecommunication companies charge a GHc1.40 per minute to UK and Italy as against countries like South Africa, Germany and UAE.

Below is the data published by the NCA:

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

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The former football prodigy with Italian side Parma is the major suspect in the double murder of his mother and young sister, who were stabbed to death at their home last night.

He was arrested in Milan as he attempted to flee on Wednesday morning although the incident took place in their home in Via San Leonardo, the outskirts of Parma, which is a multi-ethnic neighborhood where many Ghanaians live.

The suspect’s elder brother Raymond Nyantakyi, 25, returned home from work around 9pm on Tuesday to discover the gruesome murder of Patience Nfum, 45, and little sister Magdalene Nyantakyi, 11 who are both Ghanaians living in Italy.

When Raymond opened the door he found a gruesome scene with blood everywhere, on the floor, on walls and on the furniture in their sixth-floor apartment.

Solomon was touted as one of the rising stars in Italian football as he flourished in the youth system of Parma winning several titles with them.

He was promoted to the Parma senior team by Roberto Donadoni before the club went into administration as a result of which the young player’s career took a nose dive.

The 21-year-old played for Serie D for Imolese Calcio last season but suddenly stopped and joined bad company, noted for committing serious crimes in Italy.

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By Rahman Osman/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Thousands of football fans were watching a live relay of Juventus’ Champions League final against Real Madrid in Cardiff when a bang was heard and rumours of an explosion spread.

At least two people, including a seven-year-old child, were seriously hurt.

Real defeated Juventus 4-1 to win the Champions League for the 12th time.

With 10 minutes of the second half remaining, crowds rushed away from the centre of Piazza San Carlo, crushing people against barriers.

Bags and shoes were left scattered on the ground as people ran screaming out of the square.

A seven-year-old boy is reported to be in critical condition in hospital with head and chest injuries.

Some of the injuries occurred when a barrier around the entrance to an underground car park gave way.

For some Juventus fans, the incident brought back traumatic memories of the 1985 Heysel stadium disaster, where 39 people, most of them Italians fans, were killed when a wall collapsed on them before the European Cup final against Liverpool.

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Source: BBC

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Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni blamed a decrease in vaccinations in part on a “spread of anti-scientific theories”.

Italy has recorded nearly three times as many measles cases so far this year than for all of 2016.

If children are not vaccinated by the age of six, the school starting age, their parents will be fined.

Conspiracy theories about the health risks of certain vaccinations – largely based on one discredited paper – have circulated around the world, leading some parents to shun immunisation.

In Italy, the number of two-year-olds vaccinated against measles has dropped from more than 90% to below 80%. This is well short of the World Health Organization’s recommended coverage of 95% or more.

Measles is highly contagious and can lead to death.

“The lack of appropriate measures over the years and the spread of anti-scientific theories, especially in recent months, has brought about a reduction in protection,” Mr Gentiloni told a press conference on Friday.
The twelve conditions children must be immunised against are:

• polio
• diphtheria
• tetanus
• hepatitis B
• haemophilus influenzae
• meningitis B
• meningitis C
• measles
• mumps
• rubella
• whooping cough
• chickenpox

“We are sending a very strong message to the public,” said Health Minister Beatrice Lorenzin.

In recent years a loose group of campaigners against vaccinations, dubbed the ‘anti-vax’ movement, has dissuaded people from opting in to immunisations by citing supposed risks.

A long-discredited paper by Andrew Wakefield was behind much of the scare but the rumours around immunisation have continued to spread, leading to public health risks as not enough people are immune to such diseases.

Mr Wakefield was struck off the UK medical register after fraudulently claiming there was a link between the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) and autism and bowel disease in children.

He made the claim based on the experiences of just 12 children, and no other study since has been able to replicate his results.

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Source: BBC

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Renzi vowed to resign in the early hours of Monday after a bruising referendum loss, but Mattarella, whose powers include naming prime ministers and dissolving parliament, asked him to stay on until the 2017 budget passes in a parliamentary vote scheduled for later on Wednesday.

The reason Renzi’s resignation was delayed until Friday was unclear, but Mattarella wants parliament to draft a new electoral law before any ballot is held, a source close to the president said on Tuesday, a move likely to push back any vote until spring.

Italy is not due to hold a parliamentary election before 2018 but there is growing consensus among party leaders to hold it a year earlier. Interior Minister Angelino Alfano, head of a small center-right group, said it should take place in February.

Meanwhile, Italy is still looking for a way to prop up its debt-laden banks, especially struggling Monte dei Paschi di Siena, its third-biggest lender, which may require government involvement.

Two sources told Reuters on Tuesday that the government was preparing to take a 2-billion-euro controlling stake in Monte dei Paschi by purchasing junior bonds.

On Wednesday, a Treasury spokesman denied Italy was poised to ask for a loan from the European Stability Mechanism to support its banking sector.

Later on Wednesday, the top brass in Renzi’s Democratic Party will meet to hammer out a strategy. Renzi is still leader of the PD, which has the largest number of parliamentarians, so it is unlikely any new government could be formed without his backing.

The PD plans to support a government of national unity, which would have to include parties currently in opposition, two party sources said on Tuesday. If such a government is not possible, then the PD wants an early election, they said.

Infrastructure Minister Graziano Delrio, a PD member and close ally of Renzi, said on Tuesday the best solution would be for an interim government to be put in place to quickly change the electoral law so an election could be held “in the spring”.

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Source: Reuters

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Officially unveiling her political ambition on her 43rd birthday, the Onga and Samsung ambassador intends to represent the Calabar Municipal/Odukpani Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives in Abuja.

Prepared to test her leg in the murky waters of politics at the PDP primaries in October, Kate maintains that her intention to run is basically to serve the people and show a humane way to lead when in position.

‘I have a strong interest and desire to serve my people and especially show that there is a better more humane way to do things when you are in a position of leadership.

Putting the people first and being accountable to them as well as being accessible, I am also very keen to promote and champion the provision of clean water, good roads and sanitation in my constituency.

One of my key areas of project focus areas will be provision of affordable education and quality healthcare especially for expecting and young mothers‘, Henshaw says. …

Source:thenet.ng

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