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Italian Minister of Interior Affairs Receives MWL Sec-Gen

During the meeting between Italian Interior Minister Marco Minniti received Secretary-General Sheikh Mohammed Issa (MWL Website)
During the meeting between Italian Interior Minister Marco Minniti received Secretary-General Sheikh Mohammed Issa (MWL Website)
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Italian Minister of Interior Affairs Receives MWL Sec-Gen

During the meeting between Italian Interior Minister Marco Minniti received Secretary-General Sheikh Mohammed Issa (MWL Website)
During the meeting between Italian Interior Minister Marco Minniti received Secretary-General Sheikh Mohammed Issa (MWL Website)

Rome– Muslim World League (MWL) aims to pursue positive integration of Muslim communities into their societies and the citizenship they have recognized and committed to, according to MWL Sec-Gen Sheikh Mohammed al-Issa.

Italian Interior Minister Marco Minniti received Secretary-General Issa and his accompanying delegation in Rome on Tuesday.

The two officials discussed a number of topics of common interest including citizenship and positive integration with the promotion of the right of religious freedom guaranteed by law. They also addressed the issue of official recognition of Islam as a religion.

The Italian minister welcomed MWL chief and expressed appreciation for the role undertaken by the MWL in fighting extremism, unifying Muslim communities, and promoting moderation.

Minniti expressed hope that the visit of the MWL chief to Italy will achieve goals that serve humanity, especially after his historic meeting with Pope Francis in the Vatican City.

For his part, Issa thanked the Italian minister for his concern over MWL’s role and stressed that the League is keen to spread the values of peace, tolerance, and coexistence.

Later, Sec-Gen Issa held a meeting with Director of Religious Affairs in the Italian Government Maria Yurato where the two discussed several issues of mutual concern.

The two sides also discussed the legal status of several Islamic activities in Italy, and the cooperation between the association and the ministry to unify the Muslim community and improve its representation in the Italian government and civil institutions.

The secretary-general thanked Italian officials for providing the required facilities for a dialogue, hospitality and appreciation, especially in the light of the association’s renewed vision.

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Culture

Beyond Pizza and Pasta: Italy’s Culinary Heritage Awaits UNESCO Nod 

Sicilian cannoli are served at Pasticceria Cappello as Italian cuisine awaits a crucial UNESCO decision that could recognize it as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in Palermo, Italy, December 5, 2025. (Reuters)
Sicilian cannoli are served at Pasticceria Cappello as Italian cuisine awaits a crucial UNESCO decision that could recognize it as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in Palermo, Italy, December 5, 2025. (Reuters)
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Beyond Pizza and Pasta: Italy’s Culinary Heritage Awaits UNESCO Nod 

Sicilian cannoli are served at Pasticceria Cappello as Italian cuisine awaits a crucial UNESCO decision that could recognize it as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in Palermo, Italy, December 5, 2025. (Reuters)
Sicilian cannoli are served at Pasticceria Cappello as Italian cuisine awaits a crucial UNESCO decision that could recognize it as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in Palermo, Italy, December 5, 2025. (Reuters)

Italian cooking, already celebrated around the world, is poised for a new accolade: formal recognition as a cultural treasure from the United Nations' cultural agency, UNESCO.

A preliminary UNESCO assessment has cleared Italian cuisine to be added to UNESCO's "Intangible Cultural Heritage" lists and a final decision is expected on Wednesday.

Launched in March 2023 by Italy’s agriculture and culture ministries, the bid casts Italian cuisine - from pasta and pizza to risotto and cannoli - as a social ritual that binds families and communities together.

"There is no single Italian cuisine, but a mosaic of local expressive diversities," the government said.

From Lombardy's ossobuco - braised veal shanks with gremolata, to Puglia's orecchiette con cime di rapa - ear-shaped pasta with turnip greens, each region showcases Italian biodiversity and creativity, it said.

CULTURAL AND ECONOMIC FOOTPRINT

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has championed the effort, calling Italian food a symbol of "culture, identity, tradition and strength."

Industry groups estimate UNESCO recognition could boost tourism by up to 8% in two years, adding 18 million overnight stays. Italian cuisine also connects 59 million residents with up to 85 million people of Italian descent worldwide.

Globally, the Italian food service market hit 251 billion euros ($293 billion) in 2024, or 19% of the global restaurant market, Deloitte said. But imitation products abroad cost Italy an estimated 120 billion euros annually.

CRITICISM AND DEBATE

Not everyone in Italy supports the bid to join UNESCO lists, which already feature almost 800 items including Italian opera singing and truffle hunting.

Alberto Grandi, a food historian, called the UNESCO candidacy "just a marketing operation" in an interview with website Mantovauno last month.

In his 2024 book "La cucina italiana non esiste" ("Italian cuisine doesn't exist"), Grandi argued that many dishes considered traditional, including pasta alla carbonara, are relatively modern inventions influenced by foreign cultures.

Grandi's remarks have sparked a backlash from farmers' association Coldiretti, which called his claims "surreal attacks on national culinary tradition."

'THE ART OF CARING'

For restaurateurs like Luigina Pantalone, owner of Rome's historic Da Sabatino, a UNESCO nod from Wednesday's meeting in India would be a source of pride.

"Authentic Italian cuisine needs to be protected," she said, recalling childhood days washing dishes with her brothers and proudly noting that she is the fourth generation of her family to run the restaurant.

Three-Michelin-star chef Massimo Bottura summed it up: "Italian cuisine is an ancient, daily, sacred ritual – the art of caring and loving without saying a word."

Arab World

Sudan’s RSF Advances Could Trigger New Refugee Exodus, UNHCR Chief Warns 

Women displaced from el-Fasher stand in line to receive food aid at the newly established El-Afadh camp in al-Dabba, in Sudan's Northern State, Nov. 16, 2025. (AP)
Women displaced from el-Fasher stand in line to receive food aid at the newly established El-Afadh camp in al-Dabba, in Sudan's Northern State, Nov. 16, 2025. (AP)
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Sudan’s RSF Advances Could Trigger New Refugee Exodus, UNHCR Chief Warns 

Women displaced from el-Fasher stand in line to receive food aid at the newly established El-Afadh camp in al-Dabba, in Sudan's Northern State, Nov. 16, 2025. (AP)
Women displaced from el-Fasher stand in line to receive food aid at the newly established El-Afadh camp in al-Dabba, in Sudan's Northern State, Nov. 16, 2025. (AP)

Advances by paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in Sudan could trigger another exodus across the country's borders, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, told Reuters.

The RSF took over Darfur's city of el-Fasher in late October in one of its biggest gains of the 2-1/2-year war with Sudan's army. This month, advances have continued eastward into the Kordofan region and they seized the country's biggest oil field.

Most of the estimated 40,000 people that the United Nations says have been displaced by the latest violence in Kordofan - a region comprised of three states in central and southern Sudan - have sought refuge within the country, Grandi said, but that could change if violence spreads to a large city like El Obeid.

"If that were to be - not necessarily taken - but engulfed by the war, I am pretty sure we would see more exodus," said Grandi in an interview from Port Sudan late on Monday.

"We have to remain...very alert in neighboring countries in case this happens," he said.

MILLIONS HOMELESS

Already, the war has uprooted nearly 12 million people, including 4.3 million who have fled across borders to Chad, South Sudan and elsewhere, in the world's biggest displacement crisis. However, some have returned to the capital Khartoum, which is now back in Sudanese army control.

Humanitarian workers lack resources to help those fleeing, many of whom have been raped, robbed or bereaved by the violence, said Grandi, who met with survivors who fled mass killings in el-Fasher.

"We are barely responding," said Grandi, referring to a Sudan response plan, which is just a third funded largely due to Western donor cuts. UNHCR lacks resources to relocate Sudanese refugees from an unstable area along Chad's border, he said.

FAMILIES TORN APART BY CONFLICT

Most of those who trekked hundreds of kilometers from el-Fasher and Kordofan to Sudan’s al-Dabba camp on the banks of the Nile north of Khartoum, which Grandi visited last week, are women and children. Their husbands and sons were killed or conscripted along the way.

Some mothers said they disguised their sons as girls to protect them from being abducted by fighters, Grandi said.

"Even fleeing is difficult because people are continuously stopped by the militias," he said.

Grandi began his UNHCR career in Khartoum in the 1980s, when Sudan sheltered refugees from other African wars. He is on his last trip as UNHCR chief before his term ends this month. A successor has yet to be named from over a dozen candidates.

Sports

Salah-less Liverpool Plays Inter in Champions League. Barcelona, Bayern, Chelsea All in Action

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah passes manager Arne Slot, left, as he takes part in a training session in Liverpool, England, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah passes manager Arne Slot, left, as he takes part in a training session in Liverpool, England, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)
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Salah-less Liverpool Plays Inter in Champions League. Barcelona, Bayern, Chelsea All in Action

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah passes manager Arne Slot, left, as he takes part in a training session in Liverpool, England, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah passes manager Arne Slot, left, as he takes part in a training session in Liverpool, England, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

After leaving Mohamed Salah at home, Liverpool needs to show it can win without the Egyptian forward as Arne Slot's team takes on Inter Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday.

On a night when Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Tottenham are all in action, the focus is on Liverpool after Salah said Saturday it “seems like the club has thrown me under the bus.” Liverpool's response was to leave him out of the squad for its trip to Italy, The Associated Press said.

Liverpool's poor recent form boosts Inter's chances of picking up a fifth win in six games. A win for 13th-place Liverpool would put Slot's team back into the hunt for the top eight seedings for the knockout stages.

After losing its last Champions League game 3-0 to Chelsea, Barcelona aims to recover at home to struggling Eintracht Frankfurt. It will have to do without defender Ronald Araujo, who is suspended after his red card against Chelsea and has also been unavailable for personal reasons.

Seventh-place Chelsea is unbeaten in four Champions League games and visits Atalanta aiming to strengthen its hold on a top-eight spot offering direct entry to the round of 16. Bayern can earn its fifth win of the league stage by beating Sporting Lisbon in an early kickoff.

Tottenham, which lost 5-3 to Paris Saint-Germain last time out, has an easier task against Czech team Slavia Prague. Atletico Madrid visits PSV Eindhoven, Monaco hosts Galatasaray and Union Saint-Gilloise plays Marseille.

One game starts in an unusually early window at 1530 GMT (10:30 a.m. ET) as Kazakhstan's Kairat Almaty hosts Greece's Olympiacos.