What happened
Italy is sending 500 soldiers to Milan after demonstrations over rising living costs escalated into street clashes, looting and vandalism, prompting the government to promise a tougher response.

Police detained 271 people during unrest over the weekend, when hooded youths set fire to rubbish bins and ransacked shops, including luxury outlets near the city’s cathedral. Officers used tear gas and water cannon to disperse crowds. Thirty-two people were arrested, including 23 minors.

Who said what
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, who is also deputy prime minister, said the government would respond firmly, including measures that tackle violence involving young people.

“Opposition politicians often accuse the government of using security as a propaganda tool,” said Angela Giuffrida in The Guardian, and that Italy’s leaders do little to address core issues such as education, housing and the cost of living.

What next?
Italian authorities are anticipating further demonstrations across the country. France is also planning to have a substantial police presence on its streets and is considering a possible military deployment to contain further protests following its own recent wave of violent unrest.

What happened
Storm Austen, the first named storm of the season, is due to hit Britain on Friday, bringing severe rain and wind gusts of more than 70mph to the south west of the country, the Met Office has confirmed. A yellow severe weather warning has been issued for windy conditions that could lead to travel disruptions, power cuts and potential injuries from falling debris.

Who said what
“While the exact track and position of Storm Austen is still being determined”, the decision to designate it a named storm was taken to reflect “an impactful period of weather on the way and the potential for disruption in places,” said Met Office deputy chief forecaster Tom Crabtree.

After another record-breaking summer that brought drought to many parts of the country, “the week ahead will be the wettest – and windiest – of the autumn so far”, said the BBC.

What next?
The yellow weather warning for south west England is expected to be in effect from midnight on Friday until noon.

An obscure island in the Indian Ocean has become an unlikely titan in the global online gambling industry. With its lack of corporate taxes and “minimal red tape”, Anjouan is now home to a “thriving industry” of gambling websites tied to the black market and counts banks, brokers and cryptocurrency exchanges among its virtual residents, according to Australia’s ABC News.

But there is “just one problem”: “none of the licences – financial or gambling – are worth the (virtual) paper they are written on”. Meanwhile, the industry continues to draw operators and gamblers from around the world – including Britain – into its ever-expanding orbit.

Traditionally, Anjouan – one of the semi-autonomous islands that make up the Comoros archipelago – was best known for its exports of ylang-ylang oil and vanilla. But it has since “stumbled” into the “dangerous but highly lucrative” business of underground online gambling, said The Guardian. There are now 1,500 registered gaming licence holders on the books in Anjouan.

This is far from a state-sponsored endeavour to create a low-regulation haven on the island. In fact it appears to be led by a “small cadre of mostly British businessmen flogging unofficial ‘licences’” to online casinos, as well as banking and cryptocurrency platforms.

For its part the island is “fighting back” by making efforts to rid itself of its increasingly notorious reputation, added The Guardian. The government of the Comoros Union has made a “direct request” to the British government for assistance to help unravel the “unauthorised licensing regime” once and for all.