Italy's president has accepted the resignation of Premier Enrico Letta after he was sacked by his own Democratic party in a back-room mutiny.

Italian prime minister Enrico Letta was meeting the president last night to try to chart a way out of a deep political crisis after Silvio Berlusconi pulled his ministers out of the government and called for new elections.

Silvio Berlusconi: House arrest most likely outcome.

Italy has finally formed a new government, a coalition of Silvio Berlusconi’s forces and centre-left rivals who forged an unusual alliance to break a two-month stalemate following inconclusive elections.

President Barack Obama promised a grieving Boston to hunt down whoever was responsible for the deadly bombing at the marathon, while investigators focused on a man seen dropping off a bag and walking away from the site of the second of Monday’s two explosions.

President Barack Obama declared “there is a piece of Boston in me” as he paid tribute to a city shaken by what he has called an act of terror. He said: “Every one of us stands with you.”

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said that the FBI wants to speak to two men seen in at least one video from the Boston Marathon.

US authorities are to maintain “enhanced security” at transport hubs as the nation struggles to make sense of the bomb attack on the Boston Marathon.

Italian President Giorgio Napolitano expressed despair yesterday at fierce criticism of his latest plan to end a post-election deadlock that has raised fears of months of instability in the eurozone’s third largest economy.

Cyprus’s decision to force losses on bank deposits doesn’t set a precedent for the rest of the euro region, EU president Herman Van Rompuy said in an interview with De Zondag.

Silvio Berlusconi yesterday repeated a demand to be included in any Italian government, but there was no sign his centre-left rival would renege on a promise not to ally with the tycoon to avoid political stalemate.

Italy’s centre-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani said yesterday he would seek the backing of parliament for his policies on creating jobs and fighting corruption in the absence of enough support to form a government.

Barack Obama warned that looming automatic spending cuts were already affecting America’s economy and the nation’s homeland security chief said borders would be less secure if billions of dollars were yanked from the budget on Friday.

Mario Monti, the Italian prime minister announced on Saturday that he would resign once the 2013 budget is approved, potentially bringing forward an election and fuelling speculation that he might run.

Prime minister Mario Monti has told Italy’s president he is resigning because he can no longer govern after Silvio Berlusconi’s party withdrew crucial support.

Italy skipper Gianluigi Buffon has praised controversial striker Mario Balotelli for his willingness to work for the Italian cause at Euro 2012.

Italian president Giorgio Napolitano led a chorus of condemnation of Britain’s failure to inform the Italian government before launching a botched rescue mission with Nigerian forces that led to the deaths of British and Italian hostages held by a militant Islamist group.

POPE Benedict XVI in his New Year’s homily yesterday praised young people as key to securing a future of hope despite what he called “shadows on the horizon of today’s world”.

ITALY’s president appointed former European Commissioner Mario Monti yesterday to head a new government charged with implementing urgent reforms to end a crisis that has endangered the whole eurozone.

ITALY’s president raced to appoint an emergency government yesterday to face a crisis endangering the whole eurozone, after Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi resigned to the jeers of thousands of protesters.

Economist Mario Monti won some pledges of support today to lead a new technocratic government to rescue Italy from financial disaster, but not from the Northern League, a long-time ally of Silvio Berlusconi.

Italy’s president today began sounding out parliamentary and party leaders on who should lead the government and help save the country from financial disaster following the resignation of Silvio Berlusconi.

The Italian parliament’s lower chamber today backed an austerity reform package demanded by the EU, paving the way for Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to quit.

The prospect of an Italian government led by leading economist Mario Monti helped calm market jitters today.

Market pressure on Italy eased slightly today after the president vowed to accelerate reforms to make way for Premier Silvio Berlusconi’s resignation as early as this weekend and a bond sale went better than expected.

Financial markets pounded Italy today amid worries that premier Silvio Berlusconi would linger in office and delay reforms.

Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi has confirmed he will not run again for office and said his hand-picked successor Angelino Alfano will be his party’s candidate when Italy holds new elections.

Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi has promised to resign after parliament passes economic reforms, Italy’s president said tonight.

Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi lost his majority in parliament today intensifying the pressure for him to resign and help calm markets worried by the European debt crisis.

ITALIAN Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi repeated promises of economic reform as Italian bonds came under renewed attack in the eurozone crisis and the centre-left opposition asked the president to name a new government.

European Central Bank chief Jean-Claude Trichet told Italy today it was “essential” to promptly implement its deficit-reducing measures if it wants to preserve its credit worthiness.

IRENE charged into New England yesterday as it weakened to a tropical storm after racing across New York city leaving the East Coast stunned, with at least 16 dead, widespread flooding and power outages for four million homes and businesses.

Transport Minister Noel Dempsey has welcomed new "pre-clearance" facilities for passengers travelling to the US from Dublin Airport.

The use of full-body scanners and invasive pat-downs at airports around the US will not change for the "foreseeable future," Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said in an interview broadcast today.

BP said it was confident its latest experiment using a mile-long pipe would capture much of the oil flowing into the Gulf of Mexico, even as the company admitted yet another setback in the environmental disaster.

US homeland security secretary Janet Napolitano won the backing of the world’s airlines for the Obama administration’s goal of tougher security to keep terrorists off planes.

JUSTICE MINISTER Dermot Ahern said he was in favour of introducing body scanners at Irish airports in the wake of the attempted bombing of a US-bound aircraft on Christmas Day.

US Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano conceded today that the aviation security system failed when a man on a watchlist with a powerful explosive hidden on his body was allowed to board a fight from Amsterdam to Detroit.

A COMBATIVE Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi vowed yesterday to govern with “even more grit” after Italy’s top court lifted his immunity and he dismissed corruption charges against him as “laughable”.

Families carrying photos of lost loved ones streamed into a plaza near “ground zero” in New York today to observe the eighth anniversary of the World Trade Centre attack, wiping tears and raindrops from their faces under dreary skies.

FEARS of a global swine flu pandemic grew with new infections in the US and Canada yesterday and millions of Mexicans hid indoors to avoid a virus that has killed up to 81 people.

Greece has finally taken possession of a chunk of the Elgin Marbles, and now holds renewed hopes of regaining the rest.

Italy is facing the prospect of an early election or the formation of an interim government after the resignation of prime minister Romano Prodi.

OVERALL leader Fabian Cancellara claimed a dramatic victory in the 236.5km third stage of the Tour de France between Waregem and Compiegne.