ROME - Italy has pledged to finance the feasibility study of the planned railway line that will link the Ethiopian Capital, Addis Ababa with the Eritrean port of Massawa, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte assured the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed, on a visit to Rome Monday.

 Conte visited Asmara and Addis Ababa last October. A few weeks before, Eritrea and Ethiopia had signed a second peace treaty. The first peace agreement, signed July between the two countries’ leaders, specifies the restoration of transport and trade systems.

MADRID – Juventus striker Cristiano Ronaldo appeared in court on Tuesday to finalise a plea deal with a Spanish court over tax evasion charges.

 The deal, agreed in advance with prosecutors, involves an 18.8 million euro fine and a 23-month jail sentence, which the former Real Madrid star is very unlikely to serve.

 In Spain, those sentenced for under two years in prison don’t normally serve time, particularly for non-violent offences such as Ronaldo’s.

PALERMO – Sicilian police on Tuesday followed up on arrest warrants issued by prosecutors for members of the reformed ‘cupola’ of the infamous mafia clan ‘Cosa Nostra,’ taking multiple individuals into custody.

 Among those arrested were Leonardo Greco, the grandson of the clan’s top brass Michele, and Calogero Lo Piccolo, son of a clan boss Salvatore, who is currently serving a life-sentence in prison.

ROME – Speculation about whether AS Roma’s ‘Tor di Valle’ stadium project may receive additional support from Kuwaiti investors has steadily increased as the Kuwaiti ambassador to Italy and San Marino has been welcomed in to the inner circles of the club.

 His Excellency Sheikh Ali Al-Khaled Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who is also a member of the Kuwaiti royal family, became the first non-Italian to be awarded with the ‘Cavaliere della Roma’ award by the club, a token for the ambassador’s fervent support for the team.