Il Messaggiere - News from Rome, Modena, Reggio, Italy and the world

Olympic champions Ariarne Titmus and Emma McKeon return to the pool at the Commonwealth Games with a gold rush and world records on their minds, heading an Australia swimming squad boasting "insane depth".

Singapore has extended a short-stay visa for Sri Lanka's deposed president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, local media in the city-state reported on Wednesday.

Dhananjaya de Silva completed a century before Sri Lanka declared their second innings on 360-8 to hand Pakistan a mammoth victory target of 508 in the second Test on Wednesday.

Protesters angry at the high cost of living in Panama ended their three-week blockade of major roads on Tuesday, authorities said, as negotiations between the government and groups behind the demonstrations continued.

India's Olympic javelin champion Neeraj Chopra said that he was "hurt" at not being able to defend his Commonwealth Games title after pulling out with injury.

Stocks mostly rose Wednesday, rebounding from an early sell-off thanks to earnings from top US tech giants that eased concerns about consumer demand.

Beachgoers in the Japanese region of Fukui have been warned to stay away from a displeased dolphin accused of biting swimmers, with officials urging visitors to "watch from afar".

Miners in Angola have unearthed a rare pure pink diamond that is believed to be the largest found in 300 years, the Australian site operator announced Wednesday.

Dhananjaya de Silva and skipper Dimuth Karunaratne, who batted through pain from a back injury, hit half-centuries to help Sri Lanka stretch their second-innings lead to 444 in the second Test on Wednesday.

Japanese police carried out new raids on Wednesday over allegations a 2020 Tokyo Olympics board member received money from a sponsor he signed a consulting contract with, local media reported.

New Zealand super coach Scott Robertson has revealed that he wants to win the Rugby World Cup -- with or without the All Blacks.

In the scorching heat, Felipe Elvira inspects the branches of his olive trees, planted as far as the eye can see on a dusty hillside in southern Spain.

Local authorities hunting for a gang of monkeys who attacked and wounded nearly 50 people in western Japan have caught and killed one of the marauding primates, an official said Wednesday.

Karim Benzema and Eden Hazard were on target as Spanish giants Real Madrid were held to a 2-2 draw by Mexican side Club America in their pre-season friendly on Tuesday.

The All Blacks are in South Africa preparing to face the world champions, with New Zealand's head coach Ian Foster under intense pressure to end their dire run of form after four defeats in their last five matches.

Overripe palm oil fruits hang untouched in trees while others lie rotting scattered around a plantation, as Malaysian farmers reap the bitter harvest of a severe labour shortage.

A 7.1-magnitude earthquake hit the northern Philippines Wednesday, the US Geological Survey said, shattering windows of buildings at the epicentre and shaking high-rise towers more than 300 kilometres (185 miles) away in the capital Manila.

A futuristic Saudi megacity is to feature two skyscrapers extending across a swathe of desert and mountain terrain, according to the latest disclosures on the project by the kingdom's de facto ruler.

Stocks fell Wednesday as recession fears returned to the forefront of traders' minds ahead of an expected Federal Reserve interest rate hike later in the day.

Ousmane Dembele and Moise Kean scored two goals apiece as Barcelona and Juventus fought to an entertaining 2-2 draw in their US pre-season friendly in Dallas on Tuesday.

Street Fighter player Shunya Hatakeyama has muscular dystrophy, so he uses his chin to launch devastating combos. He is not the only Japanese gamer proving that disability is no barrier in eSports.

Russian tourist Alexandra Rumyantseva is tanning on a beach in Moscow-annexed Crimea, not far away from the front lines of Ukraine's eastern and southern territories.

A 7.1-magnitude earthquake hit the northern Philippines Wednesday, the US Geological Survey said, shattering windows of buildings at the epicentre and shaking high-rise towers more than 300 kilometres (185 miles) away in the capital Manila.

The Commonwealth Games are sometimes seen as a quirky relic in the modern sporting calender but former International Olympic Committee (IOC) marketing chief Michael Payne says they have consistently defied the doomsayers.

Almost as soon as he took office a year ago on Thursday, leftist rural schoolteacher Pedro Castillo found himself under fire.

The Federal Reserve is set to announce another big interest rate increase on Wednesday, the fourth this year, in its ongoing battle to tamp down price pressures that have been squeezing American families.

Tunisia has approved a new constitution granting unchecked powers to the office of President Kais Saied, the electoral board said, after a poorly attended referendum in which voters overwhelmingly backed the document.

Israeli generic drug maker Teva has reached an agreement in principle to pay $4.25 billion over 13 years to settle a series of court cases over its role in the US opioid epidemic.

Pope Francis called for "healing" Tuesday as he joined a pilgrimage to a sacred lake in Canada, one day after making a landmark apology for the abuse of Indigenous children at Catholic-run schools.

England will play a final of the European Championships on home soil at Wembley for the second time in little over a year, but the success of the country's women has the opportunity to leave a lasting legacy.

Microsoft on Tuesday said that its earnings in the recently ended quarter fell shy of expectations as personal computer sales suffered from production holdups in China and sagging demand.

Three United Nations peacekeepers and at least 12 demonstrators have been killed in escalating anti-UN protests in eastern DR Congo, officials said on Tuesday.