Earth Quake in Italy

Mirandola, ItalyOn Tuesday morning a 5.8-magnitude earth quake shook a large swath of northern Italy, killing around 15 people. The initial reports indicate that the quake also brought down buildings in the area already damaged by an earthquake that struck the area a week ago.

The latest earth quake struck at 8:30 am when many more local businesses and factories were open. This is likely to result in higher death toll in the latest earthquake in Italy. The tremors were reported to have felt as far away as Austria. The center of the quake is believed to be approximately 25 miles (40km) north-west of Bologna, near Mirandola, close to where a 6-magnitude quake struck in the early hours of 20 May, which killed seven people.

According to Guardian,

In Cavezzo’s old city centre, several buildings and the back half of the city church were reduced to rubble. Tents had been set up near the town’s sports complex and cots laid out in the tennis courts. Frightened residents sat or stood outside their homes, unsure of their next steps.

“I ran out of the fruit and vegetable store where I work as everything was falling off the shelves,” said Marzia Dondi, 42, as she stood outside her home with her two sons, aged 15 and 9. “We haven’t slept inside since last Sunday’s quake. We’re afraid to go back in. What a disaster. We were finally starting to calm down.”

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/may/29/north-italy-earthquake-deaths

Rescue workers are searching for survivors at the quake hit area. Authorities have asked the people not to panic and have faith in their rescue operations.

Debt crisis continues in Europe owing to turmoil in Greece, Italy

There seems no end to political chaos in Greece and now even in Italy, which lingers over the fate of euro’s health. Italy faces crisis due to high-rise in its debt rates. Markets stay unstable due to political chaos in Italy and Greece and more negative traits are looming over the fate of European Union that will ultimately affect the entire global market too.

Greeks are looking forward to form a new transitional government. In Italy, the political chaos emerged with possibilities of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi losing power. This has put investors in doubt over the future market trends  as new democratic governments are likely to make changes unfavorable to investors and so they are pulling back their money leading to more financial turmoil.

Interest rates for Italy’s debt have been increased to 6.6 percent reaching its highest so far since the inception of euro. The finance market set itself into fire following the rumors of prime minister’s possible withdrawal from power but he refuted it later.

Greece’s rush to pull itself away from EU to save itself from the depreciating value of euro had ignited a crisis as international leaders severely criticized the decision. The EU threatened to expel Greece and stop providing any aid. This compelled the political parties of the country to make a written commitment and follow European leaders’ demands in order to get the next installment of aid of $11 billion from the EU.

Gaddafi challenges NATO to find out hiding

The Libyan leader Col Moamar Gadhaffi has said that he would outlive the NATO bombardment of the captial Tripoli. He said this admist the report that he was injured by such NATO attack. The report of his attack was denied by the government. Gadhaffi boasted that he is in place where the NATO bomb can never reach him.

The Colonel was reacting to a statement that was credited to the prime minister of Italy that Gadhaffi is probably wounded in one of the raids or that he is hiding in one of the bunkers in his compound. The day before the italian minister spoke to the press one of the raids was reported to have hit a place that is believed to be a bunker where Gadhaffi was hiding.

Both the italian minister and the US could not confirm that Gadhaffi was hit in one of the NATO attacks. The NATO was carrying out a resolution that was carried out by the UN against Libya for using brute force against the opposition in the country which were demanding for a regime change. Since the operation began NATO has been in the battle for about two months now and the rebels are far from taking the upper hand in the battle but NATO has made rearkable success in dislodging Gadhaffi from some of the earliers it has reclaimed from the rebels.