Woman, 45, killed in Florence in seventh alleged femicide in Italy since mid-August

A 45-year-old woman abducted and thrown off a motorway bridge near Florence has become the seventh alleged femicide in Italy since mid-August.Lorena Isceri was abducted on Thursday afternoon, allegedly by her ex-boyfriend, Federico Vella, in the Rifredi area of Florence, before being forced into the boot of his car and driven towards a bridge on the A1 motorway.Isceri, who worked in the veterinary sector, still had her phone and managed to call an emergency helpline, telling operators she had been abducted.Vella, 38, stopped the car, snatched the phone and allegedly threw her off the bridge, before jumping off himself.After Isceri’s call to the helpline, police traced her phone signal but arrived too late to prevent her murder. Officers are establishing whether Isceri was killed before she was thrown off the bridge.Isceri’s mother told SkyTg24 that she had last heard from her daughter on Thursday morning, and said she sounded fine. When asked about the relationship with Vella, she said Isceri had spoken to her about it and was “very afraid”.Italian interior ministry data had indicated a downward trend in femicides during the first six months of 2026.Figures compiled by the feminist alliance Non Una di Meno showed that as of 8 August, 40 women had been killed so far this year.But numbers have risen since 15 August, Italy’s Ferragosto national holiday, with seven women, including Isceri, killed by a current or former partner.Giorgia Meloni’s ruling coalition, which on Friday celebrated becoming the longest-serving government in the history of the Italian republic, had pledged to crack down on gender-based violence after the strong public reaction to the killing of Giulia Cecchetin, a 22-year-old medical student, by her former boyfriend, in November 2023.Two years later, the government approved a law that for the first time introduced a legal definition of femicide in criminal law, punishing it with life in prison, while increasing sentences for crimes including stalking, sexual violence and the sharing of intimate images without consent.However, a campaign to educate schoolboys about healthy relationships was thwarted after the government made it conditional on parental approval.Luisa Rizzitelli, the Italy coordinator of One Billion Rising, which campaigns to end violence against women, said: “Perhaps Meloni is right to celebrate her government’s longevity, because there is precious little to celebrate in terms of concrete results.“The approach to the tragic issue of male violence against women has been based on security policies while completely lacking strategic, structural programmes for training and prevention. The stubborn refusal to implement sex and relationship education in schools is a major factor fuelling the epidemic of femicides in Italy.” In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123 and the domestic abuse helpline is 0808 2000 247. In the US, the suicide prevention lifeline is 988 and the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org