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-Top News EU News Europe

Italy cable car crash kills 13

Rescuers work by the wreckage of a cable car after it falls in north Italy's Piedmont region, May 23, 2021. (Vigili del Fuoco/Handout via Xinhua/IANS)

The cable car had been on a 20-minute panoramic trip from the village of Carciano di Stresa on the edge of Lake Maggiore, up to an altitude of 1,491 metres on Mt Mottarone..reports Asian Lite News

Thirteen people were killed and two children have been hospitalised with multiple injuries after a cable car crashed in Italy’s Piedmont region, the country’s National Corps of Alpine and Speleological Rescue (Cnsas) said.

“Stresa-Mottarone cable car in Piedmont: the final death toll of the tragic incident is 13 fatalities and two seriously injured,” Cnsas said on Twitter on Sunday.

Earlier in the day, Cnsas had tweeted that two children who had survived with injuries were airlifted to hospital in the city of Turin, the capital of Piedmont.

The cable car had been on a 20-minute panoramic trip from the village of Carciano di Stresa on the edge of Lake Maggiore, up to an altitude of 1,491 metres on Mt Mottarone, a scenic area that is popular with tourists and holidaymakers.

Rescuers work by the wreckage of a cable car after it falls in north Italy’s Piedmont region, May 23, 2021. (Vigili del Fuoco/Handout via Xinhua/IANS)
ALSO READ: Italy resumes int’l tourism

It detached and crashed a few hundred metres short of the top, Cnsas officials told RAI News 24 public broadcaster.

There were some foreign visitors among the victims, Stresa Mayor Marcella Severino told Sky TG24 private broadcaster.

“It is with profound sadness that I learned of the tragic incident on the Stresa-Mottarone cable car. I express the sympathies of the entire government to the families of the victims, with special thoughts for the children who have been seriously injured, and their relatives,” Prime Minister Mario Draghi said in a tweet.

The two surviving children were hospitalised in serious condition with multiple fractures and head and chest injuries, Sky TG24 reported.

ALSO READ: Italy reopens doors for tourists

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EU News Europe Travel & Tourism

Italy resumes int’l tourism

Italy: A tour guide explains the background information of the Fontana di Trevi in Rome, Italy, May 15, 2021. (Xinhua/Cheng Tingting/IANS)

Many streets, parks and squares in the Italian capital were overwhelmed with visitors over the weekend…reports Asian Lite News

Italy has formally reopened its borders for restriction-free travel for visitors from some countries, almost a year after the Covid-19 pandemic ravaged the country.

Many streets, parks and squares in the Italian capital were full of visitors over the weekend, Xinhua news agency reported.

As of Sunday, travellers from European Union (EU) member states, the UK, and Israel have been allowed to enter Italy without restrictions if they could show a recent negative coronavirus test, proof of vaccination, or if they have recovered from the virus in the last six months.

Prime Minister Mario Draghi had announced earlier this month at the G20 Tourism Ministers’ meeting that Italy would begin welcoming foreign tourists in mid-May, about a month before the EU’s own Digital Green Certificate pass for tourists went into effect.

A staff member measures a visitor’s temperature at Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence, Italy, on Sept. 4, 2020. (Photo by Alberto Lingria/Xinhua)

Draghi’s decision came as coronavirus indicators such as the infection, hospitalisation, and mortality rates improved over the last month.

The move Draghi announced formally went into effect Sunday for visitors from some countries.

Travellers from other parts of the world can still enter the country as long as they follow quarantine rules on arrival, and those in the country must obey national health restrictions, such as the 10 p.m. national curfew and seating for bars and restaurants limited to outdoor areas.

Meanwhile, predictions are that the tourism sector that accounted for 13 per cent of Italy’s gross domestic product before the pandemic will have to wait until the second half of 2023 to return to 2019 levels.

ALSO READ: Italy crosses 5mn jabs milestone

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-Top News London Diary London News UK News

#LetsDoLondon: Sadiq launches campaign for domestic tourism

The 50-year-old politician from Britain’s main opposition Labour Party has allocated 6 million pounds ($8 million) to directly support the new campaign…reports Asian Lite News.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has launched a domestic tourism campaign to kick-start the British capital’s economy as restrictions on international travel will likely continue this year, local media reported.

In his signing-in speech for a second term as Mayor, Khan on Monday announced the new “Let’s Do London” campaign to attract domestic visitors to the city and bring its economy back to life, reports Xinhua news agency.

A pedestrian walks by a pub, The Hope, shuttered in London due to coronavirus regulations. Thousands of British pubs have not survived the pandemic, according to an industry association, and the ones that have will need financial support “for years if they are to recover.” Photo: Yui Mok/PA

The 50-year-old politician from Britain’s main opposition Labour Party has allocated 6 million pounds ($8 million) to directly support the new campaign.

The campaign and events program will bring together London’s world-leading hospitality, culture, night-life and retail venues to promote all that the city has to offer.

“With restrictions on international travel likely to continue this year, Londoners and visitors from the UK have a unique opportunity to experience all the capital has to offer without the queues.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan

“In doing so you’ll be providing vital support for our world-leading venues as they start to re-open and need our help more than ever.

“My mission over the next three years is to put the dark days of the pandemic behind us and to deliver a better and brighter future for London, creating a fairer, greener and more prosperous city, where everyone gets the opportunities they need to fulfil their potential,” he added.

Khan confirmed that a top priority for his second term will be jobs, standing up for the Londoners who lost their jobs during the Covid-19 pandemic and helping to skill up the city’s residents to get back into work.

He also confirmed he will continue to prioritize the long-standing issues that matter most to Londoners, including safer streets, more affordable housing and action to tackle air pollution and the climate emergency.

During the May 6 local elections, more than 5,000 seats were up for grabs in city hall and town hall elections, with the Mayor of London and 12 provincial mayors along with police and crime commissioners also being elected.

ALSO READ-UK sets out post-Covid plans in Queen’s Speech

READ MORE-‘EU-AZ contract valid until last doses delivered’

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London News Politics UK News

London Mayor to rebuild domestic tourism

Sadiq Khan on Monday launched the new campaign “Let’s Do London” to bolster economic recovery…reports Asian Lite News

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has launched a domestic tourism campaign to kick-start the British capital’s economy as restrictions on international travel will likely continue this year, local media reported.

In his signing-in speech for a second term as Mayor, Khan on Monday announced the new “Let’s Do London” campaign to attract domestic visitors to the city and bring its economy back to life, reports Xinhua news agency.

The 50-year-old politician from Britain’s main opposition Labour Party has allocated 6 million pounds ($8 million) to directly support the new campaign.

The campaign and events program will bring together London’s world-leading hospitality, culture, night-life and retail venues to promote all that the city has to offer.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan

“With restrictions on international travel likely to continue this year, Londoners and visitors from the UK have a unique opportunity to experience all the capital has to offer without the queues.

ALSO READ: Sadiq Khan re-elected as London Mayor

“In doing so you’ll be providing vital support for our world-leading venues as they start to re-open and need our help more than ever.

“My mission over the next three years is to put the dark days of the pandemic behind us and to deliver a better and brighter future for London, creating a fairer, greener and more prosperous city, where everyone gets the opportunities they need to fulfil their potential,” he added.

Khan confirmed that a top priority for his second term will be jobs, standing up for the Londoners who lost their jobs during the Covid-19 pandemic and helping to skill up the city’s residents to get back into work.

He also confirmed he will continue to prioritize the long-standing issues that matter most to Londoners, including safer streets, more affordable housing and action to tackle air pollution and the climate emergency.

During the May 6 local elections, more than 5,000 seats were up for grabs in city hall and town hall elections, with the Mayor of London and 12 provincial mayors along with police and crime commissioners also being elected.

ALSO READ: Sadiq Khan Supports IPL in London

Categories
EU News Travel & Tourism

Greece resumes tourism from May 14

“Holidaymakers will either have to be vaccinated or show a (negative) PCR coronavirus test,” said Official…reports Asian Lite News

Greek Vice-Minister of Tourism Sofia Zacharaki announced on Monday that holidaymakers from European Union (EU) nations will be able to travel Athens without having to quarantine from May 14 onwards.

However, there will be preconditions, dpa news agency quoted the Minister as saying.

“Holidaymakers will either have to be vaccinated or show a (negative) PCR coronavirus test,” she told the Greek news channel Skai.

Afterwards, they will be free to take their holidays in Greece, Zacharaki added.

This regulation will also apply to some non-EU states, among them Serbia and the UK, the Deputy Minister added.

Athens had already abolished the quarantine obligation for visitors from Israel on a bilateral level at the end of March.

Also read:Covid cases surge in Greece again

Israeli holidaymakers must show an official confirmation in English that they have been vaccinated.

In addition, 14 days must have passed since the second vaccination.

Visitors from Israel must also show a negative PCR coronavirus test, which must not be more than 72 hours old.

Since the beginning of the year, the Greek government has been pushing for the development of an EU-wide vaccination passport.

This is to save the Greek tourism sector, which normally accounts for almost a fifth of Greece’s economic output.

“We hope that this EU vaccination passport will be in place by June,” Zacharaki added.

Also read:Greece mulls resuming tourism

Categories
Asia News Nepal

Nepal relaxes curbs on Tourism

Nepal has amended the quarantine rule for foreign tourists to bring back tourism….reports Asian Lite News

Tourists flying into Nepal will no longer have to quarantine if they have a negative test result for Covid-19 upon arrival, officials said on Friday.

Previously, visitors were required to undergo a week-long quarantine at their hotel and wait until the fifth day for a Covid-19 test, reports dpa news agency.

“Now, they can have tests as soon as they arrive here,” Prem Subedi, a spokesperson of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA), said in a statement.

He said that those who test negative for the virus can continue their trips; otherwise, if they test positive, they have to remain at their hotel until recovery.

Before flying to Nepal, visitors are still required to show proof of negative results in a coronavirus test conducted within 72 hours before boarding the flight, or proof that they have received a Covid-19 vaccine.

The new rules seek to attract more visitors during the spring season, especially trekkers and climbers going to some of the world’s highest peaks, including Mount Everest.

Also read:Nepal President embarks on visit to B’desh