The Japan Times - Outrage as bomb destroys Italian investigative journalist's car

Sigfrido Ranucci's vehicle was destroyed by the explosion in Pomezia, near Rome, which also damaged the family's other car and the house next door, according to his investigative television show.

"The force of the explosion was so strong that it could have killed anyone passing by at that moment," Report, which broadcasts on RAI public television, said in a statement on X.

Anti-mafia prosecutors in Rome are investigating the attack on Ranucci, who has lived under police protection since 2014 due to death threats.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni strongly condemned what she called a "serious act of intimidation".

"The freedom and independence of information are non-negotiable values of our democracies, which we will continue to defend," she wrote on X.

Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said he had ordered an increase in the journalist's security "to the maximum".

Video footage of the aftermath posted by Report on social media showed twisted metal and shattered car windows.

"At least one kilo of explosives was used," Ranucci told the Corriere della Sera daily.

His son had used his car earlier, while his daughter had walked by 20 minutes before the bomb exploded, he said.

- Bullets -

Report is known for its in-depth investigative reports and Ranucci has also written a book on the mafia.

In a 2021 television programme, he described how a former prisoner told him that mobsters "had given the order to kill you" after his book was published, but the hit "was stopped".

Ranucci told Corriere he had also received various threats recently, including finding two bullets outside his house.

On Sunday, he revealed the highlights of the upcoming Report series on social media, including investigative reports into the powerful 'Ndrangheta organised crime group in Calabria and the Sicilian Mafia.

According to campaign group Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Italy ranks 49th in the world for press freedom.

Pavol Szalai, RSF's Europe head, told AFP it was "the most serious attack against an Italian reporter in recent years".

"Press freedom itself is facing an existential threat in Italy."

The group warned in its last update that journalists who investigate organised crime and corruption are "systematically threatened and sometimes subjected to physical violence".

About 20 journalists currently live under permanent police protection after being the targets of intimidation and attacks, it said.

The most high profile is Roberto Saviano, best known for his international mafia bestseller "Gomorrah".

Saviano linked the attack on Ranucci to a political climate in Italy in which journalist are seen as legitimate "targets".

K.Yamaguchi--JT