Pope Benedict XVI used a cane today – apparently for the first time in public - at an airport ceremony to see him off on a pilgrimage to Mexico and Cuba.

Italian authorities took into custody a top boss from the Gambino Mafia clan today who was deported from the United States after spending more than two decades in jail for drug trafficking.

Airline travellers faced more chaos today as Alitalia planned to axe 50 flights because of wildcat strike action at Italian airports.

Alitalia expected cancellations or delays for as many as 250 flights today as workers continued wildcat protests, while the Italian labour minister warned that the government would not bail out the troubled airline.

President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe arrived in Rome to attend the funeral of Pope John II, sidestepping a European Union travel ban because it does not apply to the Vatican.