- Heatwave swells Asia's appetite for air-conditioning
- Markets track Wall St higher as rate hopes rise, eyes on US jobs
- States doing less to support press freedom: watchdog
- 'Fuel for water': Heatwave piles misery on Myanmar displaced
- Cockfights still rule the roost in India's forest villages
- Greenland women seek justice over forced contraception
- Hamas considering latest Gaza truce offer in 'positive spirit'
- SK Hynix says high-end AI memory chips almost sold out through 2025
- Xi heads to Europe to defend Russia ties
- Luxury brands lure Chinese shoppers despite slowdown
- Asian markets track Wall St higher as rate hopes rise, eyes on US jobs
- China to launch first probe to return samples from Moon's far side
- Spain's fashion and beauty group Puig poised for IPO
- Israel builds 'cyber dome' against Iran's hackers
- US election disinformation targets non-citizen voting
- Paul Auster's wife deplores reporting on US writer's death
- Red Bulls wary of Miami threat in MLS clash
- F1 hopes Miami brings needed lift to drab season
- Rains, mudslides kill 29 in southern Brazil's 'worst disaster'
- Champion Sabalenka sets up Swiatek rematch in Madrid Open final
- UNESCO awards press prize to Palestinian journalists in Gaza
- After breaking silence, Biden faces balancing act on Gaza demos
- Turkey says suspending all trade with Israel
- Sciences Po uni says closing main Paris site over Gaza protest
- El Kaabi hits hat-trick as Olympiakos shock Aston Villa, Fiorentina edge Brugge
- Verstappen says Newey exit won't impact his future with Red Bull
- Tens of thousands protest against Georgia 'foreign influence' bill
- El Kaabi hits three as Olympiakos shock Aston Villa, Fiorentina edge Brugge
- Apple profit ebbs as iPhone sales under pressure
- Marseille and Atalanta draw Europa League semi-final first leg
- Fierceness, Sierra Leone top Kentucky Derby field with Bafftert banned
- Leverkusen beat Roma to put one foot in Europa League final
- Postecoglou admits Spurs have 'lost belief' as top four bid fades
- US stocks advance ahead of April payroll data
- Chelsea shatter Spurs' top four bid
- Wolves ready for Nuggets 'great challenge': Gobert
- England's Wallace fires 63 to grab early CJ Cup Nelson lead
- Uruguay's leftist icon Jose Mujica has cancer: doctor
- Rains, mudslides kill 13 in southern Brazil's 'worst disaster'
- Medvedev retires injured from Madrid Open, Swiatek returns to final
- Women's World Cup and Olympic champion O'Hara to retire
- Hamilton says Newey would be 'amazing addition' for Ferrari
- Canelo ready for 'war' against Munguia
- Hyderabad steal one-run win as Rajasthan falter
- US judge grills both sides in landmark Google antitrust trial
- Stormy Daniels ex-lawyer in the hot seat at Trump trial
- Bitterness at UCLA as Gaza protest cleared
- Record loss for Russia's Gazprom as European market closed
- Tiger accepts special exemption into US Open at Pinehurst
- Andretti rips Team Penske for dubious explanation for scandal
Italy speeds up presidential vote but deadlock persists
Italy on Friday sought to accelerate the process of electing a new president after days of deadlock that has paralysed Prime Minister Mario Draghi's government, but parliament remained bitterly divided.
Four rounds of voting since Monday have failed to produce anything close to a winner, with most lawmakers casting blank ballots or abstaining due to a lack of agreement between the parties.
The fifth round went ahead as planned at 11:00 am (1000 GMT), but political leaders agreed to add another at 5:00 pm, and thereafter two a day for as long as needed.
Due to coronavirus restrictions, parliament had initially scheduled only one round of voting per day.
The presidential vote -- which with its secret ballots and back-room deals is often compared to a papal conclave -- risks deepening fractures within the national unity government that has led the eurozone's third-largest economy with remarkable unity for 11 months.
On Friday, the right-wing bloc in parliament, including Matteo Salvini's League party and Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia, finally put forward a candidate, Senate president Elisabetta Casellati.
But as a Berlusconi loyalist known for her opposition to abortion and same-sex unions, she is controversial and unlikely to secure the required majority of votes.
Former premier Berlusconi, who abandoned his own unlikely candidacy at the weekend but has since been in hospital, ostensibly for checks, vouched for her "absolute suitability".
"I appeal to parliamentarians on all sides to ask them to support Casellati," the 85-year-old said in a statement.
But the so-called centre-left bloc, including the Democratic Party and the populist Five Star Movement, decried a "serious error" of choice and boycotted the morning vote.
"The solution is an impartial name we all agree on," Five Star leader and former premier Giuseppe Conte told reporters.
- Draghi benefits? -
Draghi, a former European Central Bank chief brought in to lead the government almost a year ago, remains in the running to be elected the new head of state.
There is widespread concern his departure as prime minister could destabilise the government at a critical time and even spark snap elections -- which few parties want.
But "as the stalemate continues and the political backdrop becomes more toxic, the main beneficiary could end up being either Mario Draghi or (outgoing) President Sergio Mattarella", noted Wolfango Piccoli of the Teneo consultancy.
Mattarella, 80, secured the largest number of votes in Thursday's round of voting, despite repeatedly saying he will not renew his seven-year term.
Debt-laden Italy is recovering from a 2020 pandemic-induced recession but is banking on almost 200 billion euros ($222 billion) in EU funds to cement the trend.
This money is in turn dependent on a tight timetable of reforms -- notably to the tax and justice systems, and public administration -- that many fear will be derailed without Draghi's hand on the tiller.
However, there are fears that the fractures in the coalition caused by the presidential vote -- already showing as parties gear up for elections in 2023 -- will prove irreparable.
The president is a ceremonial figure but wields great power during political crises -- frequent events in Italy, which has had dozens of different governments since World War II.
The vote for the presidency is carried out in parliament among more than 1,000 MPs, senators and regional representatives.
L.Janezki--BTB