Yet another dramatic turn of events in the case surrounding the attack on journalist Sigfrido Ranucci. RAI has decided to "cautiously" suspend the summer reruns of "Report." The decision was made by the company's In-Depth Analysis Department "pending full clarification on this delicate and complex matter." This decision was made "to protect an editorial heritage of great value to the public service," a statement explains, adding that "the new season of "Report" in the fall remains unannounced."

Ranucci's reaction was immediate, calling the initiative "disconcerting," and saying he was "concerned" that the public company had "decided to use the pretext of shameful, absurd conjectures that have been spread in the last few hours by some political statements."

The opposition, both inside and outside RAI, is also attacking. "It's unclear what the decision to suspend reruns has to do with the need for clarity," say board members Alessandro Di Majo, Davide Di Pietro, and Roberto Natale, emphasizing that "the measure appears to be merely a punishment intended to satisfy the loud demands of a political faction."

Also speaking out were the secretary of the National Federation of Italian Journalists (FNSI), Vittorio Di Trapani, who called the suspension "a very serious act." The USIGRAI (Italian National Federation of Journalists), called it an "attack on the work of the entire editorial staff." Carlo Bartoli, president of the Order of Journalists, called the decision "incomprehensible and wrong." The Five Star Movement (M5S) suspects the Brothers of Italy (FdI) are plotting to "purge Ranucci from the program."

The rejection of the airing of old episodes of "Report" came just hours after a video posted on the program's social media profiles, in which Ranucci, announcing the summer reruns, launched the next season. "The team is already working on new investigations, and if you have anything to report, please let us know."

Fratelli d'Italia seized the opportunity, sending the editorial staff an email "pointing out" the "curious friendship between Ranucci and Valter Lavitola, a convicted felon, Freemason, and fixer, under investigation for allegedly instigating the attack. We are certain," the email states, "that the Report team will investigate the matter with journalistic rigor and will examine this story with the utmost care."

Meanwhile, investigators are continuing their investigation to determine the motive for the attack. The home of Gomes Clesio Tavares, a 49-year-old Cameroonian citizen and handyman from Lavitola, believed to be the intermediary who maintained contact with the Avellino gang that carried out the October 16 bombing, has been searched.

The Carabinieri went to an apartment in a municipality near Nola where the man, who has reportedly been in Cameroon for months, lives with his partner. The woman was also interviewed at the police station as a person with information on the incident.

For investigators, Gomes is considered a key figure. In the entrepreneur's spontaneous statements to Roman prosecutors on Wednesday, a significant portion was dedicated to the factotum. "I didn't let him escape, I didn't send him to Cameroon," the former publisher essentially said. "He's often there, and that's evident from his passport."

Lavitola himself, however, was ready to leave Italy, still headed for Africa. The suspect had already purchased his plane ticket, and the house search, on the evening of July 4th, was triggered after investigators saw him leave the house with a trolley.

Journalist Daniele Autieri, author of the "Report" investigation into the Adria shipyards in Veneto, was questioned at the Prosecutor's Office on Friday. The investigation, initially considered one of the possible leads behind the attack, was considered a possible lead, although investigators have so far found no evidence.

Finally, answers could come from analyzing the devices found in Lavitola's possession and from seven typewritten pages written by the suspect. However, this would not be the question Lavitola had prepared, with the help of two journalists, for a survey regarding Ranucci's possible political candidacy. It is not excluded, however, that investigators may also pursue this investigative lead by interviewing journalists.

(Unioneonline)

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