Tunis, Jan 17 - Italy's petroleum company ENI has plans to invest over $600 million in Tunisia in 2012, TAP news agency reported.

The company also intends to recruit 160 people for its Tunisian site, Xinhua quoted TAP citing ENI's vice president Franco Paolo.

Paolo, who called on Tunisian Minister of Industry and Commerce Mohamed Lamine Chakhari Monday, said the investments would concern the development of oil fields and the reinforcement of exploration activities.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti sought reinforcement for the euro zone's bailout fund and pledged new efforts to boost the economy after a disappointing bond auction on Thursday underlined the threat to the country's shaky public finances. Investors demanded a yield of nearly 7 percent on 10-year paper at the auction of medium- and long-term bonds, down from the record highs seen last month but still unsustainable given the 450 billion euros that Italy needs to raise through debt issuance in 2012.

Italian government bond yields edged higher on Tuesday and were expected to rise further this week with investors growing nervous that thin liquidity may complicate Rome's plans to sell 8.5 billion euros worth of debt.

Ten-year Italian bond yields rose 8 basis points on the day to 7.10 percent, widening the spread over German Bunds to 515 bps. Italy plans to sell three- and 10-year debt in its regular month-end tender on Thursday. The 7 percent level is roughly the threshold beyond which other euro zone governments have been forced to seek bailouts and markets will get increasingly nervous if yields stay above it for a prolonged period when trading picks up early next year.

Controversial Italian Prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi has said that said he will resign after an austerity package passes in the country’s Parliament next week.

He has seen several defections among supporters in the last few days over political uncertainties ever after Berlusconi managed to win a vote of confidence recently. The defections caused the government to miss having a majority in a budget vote. However, it passed due to abstentions.

Rome, Sep 25 - Inter Milan's new coach Claudio Ranieri said his side started on the right foot in their 3-1 away victory over Bologna Saturday.

Ranieri took charge only Thursday after Gian Piero Gasperini's dismissal, but secured their first victory of the season in all competition.

"It was important to start on the right foot as the lads have to get back on track," Xinhua quoted Ranieri as saying.

Rome, Aug 24 : Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will meet Libyan rebel leader Mahmoud Jibril Thursday in Milan, the prime minister's office said in a statement.

How to protect the interests of Italian companies in Libya would be on top of the agenda of the meeting, Xinhua reported citing Ansa news agency.

The report said guidelines of the relations between the two countries would also be discussed.

Milan, Feb 11 - Prada's sales last year jumped 31 percent to 2.045 billion euros as demand for the top Italian fashion house's handbags and other luxury items was bolstered by soaring demand in Asia, the company's stongest market.

Retail sales performed especially strongly, surging 44 percent in 2010, boosted by rising sales in in Asia, the Milan-based company said Thursday.

Prada almost doubled its sales in Asia last year, increasing these by 48 percent in the region, compared with 29 percent in the US and 18 percent in Europe.

Rome, Dec 1 - Mario Monicelli, a celebrated Italian film director, took his own life by leaping from the fifth-floor balcony of a Rome hospital where he was being treated for cancer. He was 95.

Public broadcaster Rai television late Monday interrupted a popular programme to announce his death.

"Death doesn't frighten me, it bothers me," Monicelli, who was awarded the Career Golden Lion achievement award at the Venice Film Festival in 1991, said in a 2007 interview with Vanity Fair.

New-age gadgets such as Apple's iPads and TVS could shortly be rolled up like newspapers, thanks to a new technology being formulated by scientists in Australia and Italy.

Researchers at Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Melbourne University and Italy's University of Padua were making use of laser technology to create products comprising TVs, iPads, cellular phones and Kindles more flexile, thinner as well as affordable.

According to the official reports, Italian police hunting a Mafia boss on the run since 1993 say they have reconstructed a genetic DNA profile of the fugitive.

ANSA reported on Thursday that the profile of Matteo Messina Denaro, the so-called Godfather of Trapani, was assembled from evidence, including hair, obtained from Denaro's brothers without their knowledge.

ANSA further said that the profile is considered a major breakthrough because the 47-year-old Denaro has never been arrested and fingerprints from his time in the military have long since been destroyed.

It has been reported that British and Italian researchers, working independently, found the majority of patients with rheumatic conditions are deficient in vitamin D.

According to the reports, researchers in Britain looked at 180 patients and found 58 percent of those with rheumatic conditions had vitamin D levels lower than what is considered "sufficient" for good health.

This FIFA World Cup, 2012 will be the last World Cup for combative Italian Midfielder Gennaro Gattuso. He has accepted the fact in front of media. He has said that at his age, it's only fair to give up to young, enthusiastic and fit players. He is now 32.

He had anticipated being a substitute in this tournament but Daniele De Rossi's injury has provided him a chance to play against Paraguay on Monday. He has also played well in an exhibition match against Switzerland last week.

It has been reported that the European Commission on Monday directed Italy to balance out a discrepancy between retirement ages for men and women on a timetable established in court.

A proposal from Italian Welfare Minister Maurizio Sacconi to slowly raise the retirement age for women working in the public sector through 2015, was rejected by EC Deputy President and Justice Commissioner Viviano Reding.

According to the reports of Ansa, Reding directed Italy to raise its retirement age for women in the public sector from 60 to 65 by 2012.

It has been reported that with Europe facing a debt crisis, Italy's government looks set to slash 10 percent off its defense budget.

The prescribed cut is due to hit the Defense Ministry in 2011 and could imperil the top-up funds Italy's armed forces receive from the Industry Ministry and other sources.

It was also reported that the measures come as NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has warned against drastic defense cuts, saying they could threaten international stability and limit growth prospects.

They found what appeared to be extensive files on law-enforcement officials and former members, Italian police who raided a Scientology chapter, have said.

The ANSA news agency said on Thursday that the documents were in a locked room of the Scientology chapter in Turin and were said to contain information on the subjects' health, politics and sexual habits.

Police spent about 9 hours searching the building as part of an investigation into alleged violations of Italian law on the handling of personal information, ANSA said, citing media reports in Turin.

Italy is organizing a divorce fair to help the married unhappy couples. This fair will also have some of the attractive events like beauty tips, spa treatment, therapies, life coaching etc.

The organizers of this event have said that the main aim of the event is to help the divorcing couple in the legal way and also to help them to start a fresh life. The number of divorces in Catholic countries is traditionally low but there is a sudden growth in the last few years.

For the refreshment of the divorced people, there will be spa treatment, a dating evening and art therapy etc. That also includes stalls and workshops to inspire people to live life alone without any complain.

British and Italian researchers have said that people who sleep for less than 6 hours each night have an increased risk of dying prematurely.

Those who slept for less than 6 hours a night were 12 percent more likely to die prematurely than those who slept the recommended 6-8 hours a night, researchers at the University of Warwick and the Federico II University Medical School in Naples, Italy, have found.

The researchers of UK and Italy have found out that less than six hours sleep at night leads a human to early death.

People having very little sleep are 12% more likely to die over a 25 year age than those who are having a deep long sleep. This survey came through 1.5 million people in 16 different studies.

This study was based on the relationships between mortality and sleep that has been found out from the earlier survey of US, UK and some of the European and East Asian countries.

Officials have said that a woman wearing a burqa was stopped by Italian police under a recent ordinance that bans any clothing preventing identification of the wearer.

ANSA reported on Monday that although the foreign-born woman was identified by police after a series of spot checks, she is still liable for a $660 fine under the controversial decree which took effect in January.

Novara Police Chief Paolo Cortese said, "The ordinance is being applied in the instant case because the woman was inside the post office at the time, which is a public building."

Officials have said that thirty people connected with an Italian hospital face charges in the deaths of eight patients mistakenly given laughing gas instead of oxygen.

ANSA reported on Monday that charges have been brought against doctors, anesthetists, suppliers, technicians and local health officials in the 2007 alleged pipe-fitting mistake that may have led to the deaths.

ANSA also said that the defendants will stand trial July 2 on charges including manslaughter, negligence, supplying incorrect materials and administrative violations.

Among those charged are staff and executives of Ossitalia, a company specializing in the installation of medical gas equipment.