Italy has begun removing the names of gay mothers from their children’s birth certificates, as part of the right-wing government’s crackdown on same-sex parenting. The move comes after populist prime minister Giorgia Meloni’s coalition announced in March that state agencies should no longer register the children of same-sex couples, a move that sparked protests in Milan. Families have begun receiving letters from the state prosecutor, with PinkNews reporting that 27 parents in the northern city of Padua have been issued notices that they were being removed from their child’s birth certificate. Other families have received letters in Milan, Florence and Fiumicino, near Rome. Michael Leidi and her wife Viola were reportedly among one of the three lesbian couples to be targeted by the crackdown, with Ms Leidi telling LGBTQ+ Nation that she “cried for 10 days” after receiving the letter. It informed them that the inclusion of Ms Leidi’s name was “contrary to public order”, as she was not the biological mother of the couple’s daughter Giulia, the site reported. The policy means only the recognised biological mother has parenting rights, and if she was to die, her children can be handed to relatives or taken into the state’s care. “It was as if I did not exist,” Ms Leidi told LGBTQ+ Nation. “I suspect the government is afraid that a family that looks different, like ours, can be happy - maybe even happier, sometimes - as a traditional family. “On paper, they say Guilia has one mother but we know she has two. We will do everything possible to prove we are a good family.” Speaking to the Daily Mail, Ms Leidi said that the couple had been together for 11 years and were both teachers of children with special needs. After Viola became pregnant through artificial insemination, their local mayor had signed Giulia’s birth certificate and had been “very supportive”. Despite this, they were recently sent a letter informing them of the changes to the birth certificate. It was followed by an unsuccessful legal attempt to overturn the removal of her name and a rejection by local judges of their bid to take the case to Italy’s Supreme Court. Italy’s first female prime minister had rallied against the ‘LGBT lobby’ and ‘gender ideology’ as part of her successful campaign last year to win power. Despite Ms Meloni comparing herself to British Conservatives and denying she is homophobic, her party rose to power with tough rhetoric against same-sex parenting and support for traditional families and moral values. In a recent speech, she said: “We want a nation in which – whatever each person’s legitimate choices and free inclinations may be – it is no longer a scandal to say we are all born from a man and a woman.” Her coalition partner, Matteo Salvini, of the far-right League party, had previously called gay parents “unnatural” while the government opposed a Brussels plan for a parenthood certificate that would be valid across the EU. In 2016, Italy’s former centre-left government legalised same-sex civil unions, however stopped short from issuing full adoption rights following opposition from the Catholic church. Gay couples are forced to go abroad if they want children, as they are banned from accessing reproductive medical treatment such as IVF and surrogacy is also prohibited. Italian law does not rule if same-sex couples can both be recognised as parents on official certification, which meant local mayors were left to make the call based on their own personal views. However, now the message from the interior ministry to town halls is that such arrangements are illegal. This follows a Supreme Court ruling last December against a male same-sex couple who brought a child obtained through surrogacy into Italy. Pro-LGBTQ politicians have condemned the move, arguing that it is clearly discriminatory. Elly Scheink, the leader of the centre-Left party, who is also in a same-sex relationship, said: “These families are tired of being discriminated against. “We’re talking about boys and girls already growing up in our communities and going to schools.” Meanwhile, a poll last month found that two-thirds of Italians hold positive views on same-sex parenting and adoption, demonstrating a surge of support in recent years. Read More UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak apologizes for a previous ban on LGBTQ+ people in the military Russian lawmakers pass a bill outlawing gender-affirming procedures to protect 'traditional values' Thousands march at Budapest Pride as LGBTQ+ community voices anxiety over Hungary's restrictive laws Italy begins removing gay mothers from children’s birth certificates Six-year-old boy and his 12-year-old sister drown in Texas river New drug to protect babies and toddlers from RSV gets FDA approval ahead of cold season

Russia has recovered 10 bodies and flight recorders from the ill-fated plane carrying Wagner chief and his allies which crashed on Wednesday, officials said. An investigative committee is carrying out molecular genetic testing to identify the bodies from the crash site, officials said on Friday. The jet crashed soon after taking off from Moscow for St Petersburg. It was believed to be carrying the powerful mercenary group’s chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, six other Wagner members, and a crew of three, Russia’s civil aviation authority said. Rescue workers found 10 bodies at the spot of the jet’s remains, the Russian media reported citing anonymous sources from Wagner group which confirmed that their top leader was dead. The officials have not confirmed the identities of the 10 bodies recovered from the wreckage. Russian investigators have opened a probe into what happened. However, they have not yet said what was the suspected cause leading to the plane’s to suddenly fall from the sky. A video of the crash showed the plane spinning and falling from several metres high altitude as smoke emanated from it. Prigozhin was also listed among those aboard the private plane flying northwest of Moscow. The crash has no survivors and comes exactly two months after Prigozhin led a failed mutiny against army chiefs. While there has been no official confirmation of Prigozhin’s death, he has been eulogised by president Vladimir Putin who sent his condolences to the families of those killed in the crash on Thursday and spoke of Prigozhin in the past tense. Citing preliminary information, the Russian president condoled the death of Prigozhin and his top Wagner associates. While praising Prigozhin, Mr Putin said he also made some "serious mistakes" without elaborating on them. Western politicians and commentators have suggested, without presenting evidence, that the Russian leader ordered Prigozhin to be killed to punish him for launching the June mutiny against the army’s leadership which also represented the biggest challenge to Mr Putin’s rule since he came to power in 1999. British military intelligence said on Friday there was not yet definitive proof that Prigozhin had been onboard but that it was "highly likely" he was dead. The Pentagon has said its own initial assessment is that Prigozhin was killed. Read More Putin ally says he warned Wagner chief Prigozhin ‘to watch out’ for threats to life – Ukraine-Russia war live Prigozhin seen laughing about death in video released by Wagner-linked channel: ‘We’ll all go to hell’ Putin’s hit list: from poisoned tea to mysterious falls, the grisly fate of the Kremlin’s enemies Wagner leader ‘killed’ in plane crash: Your questions answered Wagner Group: Timeline of Yevgeny Progozhin’s private army as leader ‘killed in plane crash’

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Senator Dianne Feinstein was briefly hospitalised on Tuesday after suffering what a spokeperson said was a “minor fall” in her California home. The fall, first reported by TMZ, is just the latest incident in a climbing number of health-related issues that have troubled the 90-year-old Feinstein in recent months and is likely to contribute to growing concerns about her ability to serve. The senior California lawmaker only recently returned to Congress after an extended absence due to illness; that departure left Democrats unable to subpoena members of the Supreme Court for a spring hearing about ethics in the nation’s highest judicial authority — though it’s unclear whether she and others on the panel had the stomach for such a move to begin with. “Senator Feinstein briefly went to the hospital yesterday afternoon as a precaution after a minor fall in her home. All of her scans were clear and she returned home,” a spokesperson told the San Francisco Chronicle. Ms Feinstein is set to retire at the end of her term next year. Her succession has sparked a major primary fight in the state of California, with three prominent members of California’s congressional delegation all vying for the job. Her staff, meanwhile, remains adamant that the aging senator remains active and completely able to perform her duties as senator. Those assertions have brushed up sharply against reports in the media of her frequent bouts of confusion throughout the halls of Congress, including numerous instances where she has been heard asking aides where they are guiding her and a recent episode during a committee hearing when the senator began calling for a vote that was already underway. Defenders of the Democratic veteran have claimed that criticisms of her performance and reports of her bouts of confusion are rooted in sexism, arguing that the same concerns are not applied equally to male politicians of similar ages. To be clear, those criticisms are far from only centred around Ms Feinstein; they recently were vocalised in regards to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell by Republicans like Nikki Haley after the former appeared to freeze and become unable to speak at a press conference, before being led away by a colleague. The latest news about Ms Feinstein comes only a week after it was revealed in a news report that she has ceded power of attorney to her daughter. Read More Nikki Haley urges McConnell and Feinstein to ‘walk away’ after recent health concerns Dianne Feinstein faces fresh pressure to step down as she passes power of attorney to daughter Mitch McConnell’s abrupt silence at press conference spurs fresh calls for term limits

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