NAPLES – The Ukranian actor Artem Tkachuk, who recently came to fame playing a young gangster, has been stabbed, according to police sources.

 Best known for his appearance in Claudio Giovannesi’s La Paranza dei Bambini, the 18-year old was with a friend, 21, on Saturday night in Chiaia, Naples.

 The pair were approached by a group of young men. The exact motive for the attack is still hard to establish but the pair were reportedly asked whether they were from Rione Traiano, an area of the city. When they replied that they were not, they were attacked.

BAGHERIA - The 5 Star Movement (M5S) have lost ground to the League, its coalition partners, and Italy's left-wing candidates in Sicilian local elections which took place Sunday.

 The centre-right, backed by the League, have made large inroads in the Sicilian electorate, its voter base increasing across the island, while the M5S have lost two seats they previously administered: Gela and Bagheria.

 Bagheria in particular marked an embarrassing fall from grace for the M5S. Romina Aiello, its candidate for the town, won just 11 per cent of the vote.

TRIESTE - The organisers of the Trieste Half Marathon have had to backtrack on their decision to exclude African athletes from the event following widespread public outcry that accused the race of racism.

 President of race organiser Apd Miramar Fabio Carini was lambasted last week for the decision to exclude certain nationalities from the race.

 Carini argued that the decision had been made as a way to tackle the exploitation of African athletes that he and fellow organisers believed to be prevalent in the sport.

FOGGIA - A 26-year-old man of Gambian descent who was denied asylum has died after a fire broke out in a refugee camp in Apulia where he sought refuge.

 The victim, who was forced to leave an asylum centre after his application was rejected, had recently moved to the Borgo Mezzanone refugee camp, a few kilometres outside Foggia, where he sold clothes.

 A fire broke out in the early hours of Friday and the victim’s house, built primarily of sheet metal and wood, was almost completely destroyed.