Italy’s parliament has formally added the crime of femicide – the deliberate killing of women and girls due to their gender – to its criminal code, with a punishment of life imprisonment.

The bill was unanimously approved on Tuesday, marking what Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni described as a sign of “political cohesion against the barbaric nature of violence against women”, according to Italian public broadcaster RAI.

Meloni’s government has backed the bill since its start and supported other legislation to protect women, like anti-stalking laws. Parliament is also debating a bill that prohibits sexual intercourse without “free and actual consent”.

“We have doubled funding for antiviolence centres and shelters, promoted an emergency hotline and implemented innovative education a

See Full Page