“Chi nun caccia, nun trova.”
He who doesn't hunt, doesn't find.
Buongiorno, fratelli e sorelle dell'Eterna Città! Oggi è lunedì 27 luglio, festa di San Pantaleone, medico e martire del IV secolo, patrono dei medici e invocato contro malattie e disgrazie. Pantaleone nacque a Nicomedia, nell'Asia Minore, e fu medico così illustre che lo stesso imperatore Diocleziano lo scelse come proprio dottore di corte. Convertitosi al cristianesimo, distribuì tutti i suoi beni ai poveri e fu infine martirizzato nel 305 d.C. sotto la persecuzione diocleziana. La sua devozione è particolarmente forte a Ravello, sulla Costiera Amalfitana, dove il sangue del santo è conservato in una reliquia e, secondo la tradizione, diventa liquido ogni anno il giorno della sua festa. A Roma, questo lunedì segna l'inizio di una nuova settimana in piena ondata di calore estiva: il bollino rosso resta attivo su quindici città italiane, e la Capitale registra temperature sopra i 38°C già dalle prime ore della mattina. Le fontane dei nasoni continuano a essere una benedizione per turisti e romani, e la rete dei rifugi climatici del Comune rimane aperta 24 ore su 24. Buongiorno e buon lunedì, Roma!
Rome — Italy's Health Ministry has placed fifteen cities under the highest level of heat warning as the country's third major heatwave of summer 2026 reaches its peak. Rome, Florence, Bologna, Milan and Naples are among the municipalities with the bollino rosso — the red dot — activated, signalling extreme danger for the entire population, especially the elderly, children, and outdoor workers. Temperatures in the capital have exceeded 38°C for three consecutive days, with thermal cameras at the Colosseum recording surface temperatures above 55°C on the ancient cobblestones. Civil Protection volunteers have been distributing water near major tourist sites, while the Comune di Roma has extended the operating hours of its network of climate shelters — air-conditioned public buildings and libraries that remain open around the clock. The CMCC climate research centre published a report this week showing that average summer temperatures in Rome have risen steadily over the past decade, with tropical nights — when temperatures never drop below 20°C — now the norm rather than the exception. Mayor Roberto Gualtieri urged residents to check on elderly neighbours and avoid unnecessary travel during peak heat hours. In nearby Lazio, the Appia Antica Regional Park remains under its highest wildfire-risk classification, with open flames and smoking banned across the ancient parkland. The extreme conditions have reignited the debate over climate adaptation in Italian cities, with environmental groups calling for faster implementation of the national climate plan.
Rome — Former midfield maestro Andrea Pirlo is set to be named the new head coach of the Italian national football team, according to multiple reports emerging over the weekend. The 47-year-old, who won the World Cup as a player in 2006 and later managed Juventus, would replace Luciano Spalletti at the helm of the Azzurri. Pirlo, who also enjoyed a celebrated spell at New York City FC and Italian club Sampdoria, is expected to be officially presented at a press conference at the FIGC's headquarters in the Coverciano district of Florence later this week. The appointment comes after Italy's disappointing exit from the 2026 World Cup group stage in the United States, where the defending European champions were eliminated after defeats to Argentina and Belgium. Pirlo's reputation as a tactical innovator and his calm, cerebral approach to the game have earned him widespread respect, though sceptics note his relatively thin managerial CV at the highest level. Football analysts in Rome say the choice reflects a desire by the FIGC to return to the technical, possession-based style that defined Italy's golden era.
Rome — Today marks the thirty-third anniversary of the devastating car bomb attacks that targeted two historic churches in Rome on the night of July 27, 1993, carried out by the Sicilian Mafia as part of a campaign of terror against the Italian state. At just after midnight, a Fiat Fiorino packed with explosives detonated outside the medieval basilica of San Giorgio in Velabro, near the Circus Maximus, destroying the church's 12th-century portico and causing extensive damage to the main structure. Just twenty-two minutes later, a second bomb struck the Archbasilica of San Giovanni in Laterano, the ecumenical cathedral of Rome and the oldest of the four major papal basilicas. The attacks wounded twenty-two people and were part of a wider Mafia bombing campaign — which had already struck the Uffizi Gallery in Florence two months earlier — orchestrated to intimidate the Italian government after the arrest of Cosa Nostra boss Salvatore 'Totò' Riina. Today, the restored portico of San Giorgio in Velabro stands as a symbol of resilience: restorers deliberately left certain bomb-scarred stones unrepaired as a permanent memorial to the violence. A torchlit procession between the two churches, organized by the anti-Mafia association Libera, the Diocese of Rome and the City of Rome, is scheduled for this evening.
Rome — Italy has crossed a historic environmental threshold: for the first time in the country's modern history, its forests now cover more territory than its farmland, according to a new report mapping the nation's changing landscape. The study, compiled by researchers at the Italian National Institute for Forests and Wildlife (INFA), shows that woodland coverage has expanded steadily over the past three decades, driven by the gradual abandonment of marginal agricultural land, natural reforestation, and active replanting programmes. Lazio, where Rome is located, is one of the regions that has seen the most significant forest growth, with oak, chestnut and pine woods reclaiming hillsides that were once terraced for olive groves and vineyards. Environmentalists have hailed the report as a vindication of rewilding efforts but warned that the shift also poses challenges, including increased wildfire risk during the kind of extreme heatwaves that have plagued Italy this summer. The expansion of forests has been particularly notable in central and southern Italy, while the north — home to the Po Valley's intensive agriculture — has seen slower change. Experts say the findings should prompt a rethink of rural land-use policy, with a focus on sustainable forestry and the creation of green corridors connecting fragmented woodland habitats across the peninsula.