Brussels - Italy, Spain and Greece are the worst countries in the European Union for breaking the bloc's laws on creating a single market, with Poland catching up fast, a study published by the European Commission in Brussels on Thursday showed.

Italy is currently facing legal action - known as "infringement proceedings" - from the commission in no fewer than 112 cases, the highest figure in the bloc, the EU executive's report said. Spain was second with 103 cases.

Greece came in third, with 91 cases, closely followed by Germany, with 90.

Rome- Police in southern Italy have arrested 29 Africans suspected of running a cocaine and heroin ring, officials said Thursday.

Two Italian nationals were also apprehended in overnight raids in the town of Castel Volturno near Naples, local carabinieri commander Carmelo Burgio told Deutsche Presse-Agentur, dpa.

Rome - Seven drunken fans of Ajax have been arrested in Florence f

Madrid/Rome  - A Madrid judge ruled Wednesday that Italian anti-doping proceedings against Alejandro Valverde are "null and void," but the Spanish cyclist said that he would appear anyway in an effort to clear his name.

Madrid Judge Antonio Serrano ruled that proceedings initiated against Valverde by Italy's National Olympic Committee (CONI) made unlawful use of blood samples seized from alleged doping doctor Eufemiano Fuentes, in an investigation against the winner of the UCI ProTour championships in 2006 and 2008.

Lampedusa, Italy - Around 100 Tunisians protesting expulsion orders served against them by Italian authorities, clashed Wednesday with police and started fires at an immigrant detention centre on the island of Lampedusa.

Several people were injured in the disturbances, with some receiving medical treatment after inhaling fumes from the fires, the ANSA news agency reported.

Relative calm had returned by mid-afternoon, police said.

Rome  - Lawyer David Mills is sentenced to prison for accepting a bribe offered by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, triggering a political crisis. Right?

Wrong.

Instead, Tuesday's court ruling passed almost unnoticed compared to the storm that has engulfed Italy's main centre-left opposition Democratic party.