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

A well-financed campaign to build a casino in the heart of New York's theater district collapsed Wednesday as a government-appointed panel voted down the proposal.

Canada's central bank cut its key lending rate on Wednesday, offering a boost to borrowers in an economy squeezed by US President Donald Trump's trade war.

Pakistan's Asia Cup match with the United Arab Emirates began one hour late Wednesday as the fallout rumbles on from a handshake row with arch-rivals India.

The beauty of sport is its ability to surprise and Isaac Nader produced one of the biggest ever in international 1,500 metres finals as he won the world title on Wednesday while Katie Moon was a more predictable winner of a third successive pole vault crown.

President Donald Trump is leading the world "in the wrong direction" on climate and weaponizing clean energy as a culture-war issue, according to John Podesta, a longtime advisor to Democratic presidents.

The European Union on Wednesday proposed curbing trade ties with Israel and sanctioning ministers in its strongest action yet over the war in Gaza, though reluctance from key member states risks blocking adoption.

The US Treasury Department's chief of staff is anticipated to join the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a key role as its number-two official, a source told AFP on Wednesday.

Pep Guardiola acknowledged that Manchester City are not considered among the favourites to win the Champions League ahead of their opening game against Napoli on Thursday.

The European Union's top diplomat warned Wednesday that its push for closer ties with India could be hampered by New Delhi's purchases of Russian oil and involvement in military drills with Moscow.

Ukraine reached the semi-finals of the Billie Jean King Cup for the first time with gritty performances from Elina Svitolina and Marta Kostyuk against Spain on Wednesday in Shenzhen.

Olympic 400m hurdles champion Rai Benjamin said on Wednesday he was ready for another "historic" tussle with great rivals Karsten Warholm and Alison dos Santos after all three cruised into the world championships final.

The bobsleigh track for the 2026 Winter Olympics has "surpassed expectations" after being completed in time for the Milan-Cortina Games, organisers said on Wednesday.

Stock markets and the dollar steadied as investors expected the US Federal Reserve to cut interest rates Wednesday to shore up the world's biggest economy.

Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang on Wednesday said he was disappointed by a report that Beijing has barred major Chinese tech companies from buying his company's world-leading chips, a crucial component in the generative AI revolution.

Portugal's Isaac Nader outsprinted Briton Jake Wightman to claim a surprise gold in the men's 1,500 metres at the world championships on Wednesday.

France's National Library launched a public appeal for donations on Wednesday to acquire hundreds of unpublished documents belonging to Marcel Proust, including some showing how the famed writer settled on one of his most famous lines.

East Timor's parliament on Wednesday said it would scrap lifetime pensions for MPs, bowing to public pressure after dropping a plan to buy SUVs for lawmakers in one of southeast Asia's poorest nations.

South Africa's 400 metre world record holder Wayde van Niekerk said Wednesday he was grateful just to be competing at the World Athletics Championships after serious injury derailed his career.

American Katie Moon won a third consecutive women's pole vault world title in Tokyo on Wednesday.

Donald Trump was welcomed by King Charles III to Windsor Castle Wednesday with a royal spectacle featuring gun salutes, mounted horses and bagpipes as the US president's historic second state visit got into full swing.

Manchester United on Wednesday reported an annual net loss for the sixth consecutive year despite record revenues of £666.5 million ($910 million).

Australian teen sensation Gout Gout advanced to the semi-finals of the 200 metres at the world championships on Wednesday and immediately vowed to keep emulating Jamaican legend Usain Bolt.

Artificial intelligence could boost the value of global trade by almost 40 percent by 2040 thanks to cost reductions and productivity gains, the World Trade Organization said Wednesday.

Jorja Miller has been ruled out of New Zealand's Women's Rugby World Cup semi-final against Canada in a blow to the reigning champions' hopes of defending their title.

Noah Lyles' bid to match Usain Bolt's record of four consecutive world 200 metres titles got off to a steady start as the American safely negotiated his heat on Wednesday.

A judicial commission set up by South Africa's president to investigate explosive claims by a top cop linking politicians to criminal gangs began its public hearings on Wednesday, weeks after a delayed start.

Paris Saint-Germain women have made an offer for Barcelona's Alexia Putellas and are "in discussion" with the two-time Ballon d'Or winner, AFP learned on Wednesday from a source close to the negotiations.

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden eased into the 200 metres semi-finals on Wednesday in Tokyo as she began her quest to become the first woman to achieve the individual world sprint double since Jamaican legend Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in Moscow in 2013.

Germany will need sweeping change to remain free and prosperous, Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned Wednesday, calling on the country to unite in the face of Russian aggression, economic woes and rising extremism.

Celebrated director Park Chan-wook's star-studded murder comedy "No Other Choice" opened Asia's biggest film festival Wednesday, which is launching its first fully-fledged competition lineup as South Korea projects its soft power worldwide.

India's participation in military exercises with Moscow and its purchases of Russian oil "stand in the way of closer ties" with the EU, the bloc's top diplomat Kaja Kallas said on Wednesday.

Thieves have broken into Paris's Natural History Museum, making off with gold samples worth 600,000 euros ($700,000) in the latest of a series of robberies from cultural institutions, according to the museum.

AI companies have sucked up the world's entire music catalogue and are guilty of "wilful, commercial-scale copyright infringement", a major music industry group told AFP.

Britain treated Donald Trump to an elaborate ceremonial welcome featuring a gun salute and mounted horses as the US president's unprecedented second state visit began under tight security on Wednesday.

How did the ostrich cross the ocean?

Ricky Hatton's family said the British former world boxing champion was "excited for the future" before his death at the age of 46.

Stock markets and the dollar steadied as investors expected the US Federal Reserve to cut interest rates Wednesday to shore up the world's biggest economy.

Days after escaping alongside 13,500 others in a giant jailbreak during deadly anti-corruption protests in Nepal, Avinash Rai rubbed his belly after a meal -- and strolled back into prison.

The wife of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said Wednesday that laboratory analysis of smuggled biological samples found he was killed by poisoning while incarcerated at an Arctic prison in February 2024.