Roberto Saviano faces defamation verdict for remark about Giorgia Meloni

Writer could be imprisoned if found guilty over comments castigating Italian PM for her vitriol about Mediterranean rescues

A Rome judge is poised to deliver a verdict in a criminal defamation trial against the Italian anti-mafia author Roberto Saviano for calling the prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, a bastard".

In a case that has attracted international attention and criticism of Italy's draconian defamation laws, Saviano, who has lived under police protection since the publication of his bestselling book Gomorrah, faces up to three years in prison if found guilty at Rome's criminal court on Thursday.