Your trusted source

Italian President Sergio Mattarella is due to preside over a state funeral for 18 of the victims of Tuesday's bridge collapse in Genoa, BBC reported.

Mr Mattarella and Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte will lead mourners at the ceremony at a hall in the city, the source reported, adding so far 38 people are confirmed to have died in the disaster and five are still unaccounted for.

Some families are reportedly staying away from Saturday's ceremony because of anger at the government.

The collapse of a section of the Morandi motorway bridge and the deaths of those crossing in vehicles have led to a fierce debate in Italy about the nation's infrastructure.

By Friday, the official count was 38 dead, with five people still missing. Rescuers hold little hope of finding anyone alive at this stage.

The cause of the unexpected tragedy is not yet clear. The bridge was having work done to shore up its foundations at the time, and there was also extremely heavy rainfall