- Conte is out: Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has resigned.
- Some background: The political crisis erupted earlier this month, when far-right party leader Matteo Salvini withdrew his support of Conte and called for new elections.
Here's what you need to know:
Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has officially resigned, according to Ugo Zampetti, spokesperson of the presidential palace.
Zampetti announced the resignation shortly after Conte arrived at the presidential palace.
Earlier, Conte, speaking before the Italian Senate, said he had planned to offer his resignation to Italy's President Sergio Mattarella.
Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte just confirmed that he will offer his resignation to Italy's President Sergio Mattarella.
Conte's announcement came at the end of his speech before the Italian Senate moments ago.
An Italian court in Italy has seized the Open Arms rescue vessel and ordered that all the migrants on board to disembark, prosecutor Salvatore Vella told CNN on Tuesday.
According to Vella, the seizure of the ship became necessary after an inspection by medical personnel conducted earlier on Tuesday found that the hygienic and health conditions on board had deteriorated.
Salvini — who rose to power on anti-migrant sentiment — refused to allow Open Arms to dock, despite a court ruling that said the boat should be allowed to. Meanwhile, Conte demanded that Salvini "urgently adopt the necessary measures to ensure assistance and protection for minors present in the boat."
Here's what to expect now:
The feud was blown wide open last week as the two engaged in a bitter political standoff over a ship full of migrants.
Matteo Salvini, deputy Prime Minister of Italy and Minister of the Interior, defended his actions as Interior Minister at a session at the Italian senate saying: "I will do what I did all over again."
Talking about Europe and the relationship Italy has with the EU he highlighted: "I don't want Italy to be slave of anybody." Salvini also spoke about migrants and his immigration policy, clarifying "you reach Italy if you have a proper permission to enter."
He said other politicians in Italy might be afraid of calling for new election, but he wasn't: "I am a free man. I am not afraid of the judgment of Italians."
Salvini took out a rosary in the middle of his speech and asked the Virgin Mary for protection, not for him but for Italians. "The emergency of this country is the demographic crisis and our budget law will need to have at least 50 billion euro to reduce taxes," he added.
Looking to what comes next for Italian politics he told the senate "I want to offer to Italian a future of growth and prosperity" and added "If you want to complete the reforms that we started we [the League party] are here."
The two populist, euroskeptic parties secured the most votes in the March 2018 election. But voters did not return a majority to any single party, and neither politician would concede the top job to the other.
The appointment of Conte — a law professor with no political experience — came after weeks of political wrangling among the jigsaw of political parties returned by voters in March.
Conte's announced resignation today comes after the coalition fell apart this month over disagreements on key policies.
While offering to resign, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said Matteo Salvini, the leader of the far-right League party, was "irresponsible" to start Italy's current political crisis.
Conte — a law professor with no previous political experience — became prime minister in June 2018, after the League and Five Star Movement reached a coalition agreement.