OREANDA-NEWS. The Italian Senate supported the extension of the state of emergency introduced in the country due to the coronavirus epidemic until October 15.

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte made a proposal to prolong it. “Prolongation of the emergency regime is inevitable and justified, since the virus is still circulating in the country,” the politician said during a speech in the upper chamber of the national parliament. Conte also noted that the regime should be extended for a formal reason: without it, many government orders aimed at combating the epidemic would become invalid.

At the beginning of spring, Italy became the first European focus of the coronavirus pandemic. A high mortality rate was registered in the country. According to the World Health Organization, more than 246 thousand people fell ill in Italy, over 35 thousand patients died.