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16 children among 260 dead in Italy quake


L'AQUILA: The death toll in central Italy's earthquake has risen to 260 including 16 children, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said Wednesday.Civil protection services have set up 31 tent cities and 24 field kitchens and deployed 14 mobile medical units, he said during his third visit to the quake zone since the disaster struck Monday.Nearly 18,000 people are sheltering in some 3,000 tents at the camps dotted around the Abruzzo capital L'Aquila, he said in televised remarks."Of the 260 victims, nine have yet to be identified," the prime minister said, confirming that a state funeral would be held Friday in L'Aquila."The rescue operations and personnel are working satisfactorily and we have around 8,500 people on the ground, including 2,000 firefighters, 1,500 soldiers, 2,000 police officers and 3,000 volonteers," Berlusconi said.The Italian leader hailed what he called "a real competition" among well-wishers in Italy and abroad to help those in need, and appealed for financial contributions in lieu of material items.

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