• Sigfrido Ranucci's car was blown up by an explosive device outside his home in Pomezia, Italy.
• No injuries occurred, although Ranucci's daughter narrowly escaped just minutes before the explosion.
• The attack has been condemned by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as a serious act of intimidation.
• Ranucci has faced threats from the mafia due to his investigative work and has been under police protection since 2021.
• Anti-mafia authorities are now investigating the incident, which involved a significant amount of explosives.

An explosive device detonated under the vehicle of prominent Italian journalist Sigfrido Ranucci in Pomezia, near Rome, causing extensive damage but no injuries. The explosion occurred shortly after Ranucci's daughter walked by the car, prompting immediate investigations by anti-mafia authorities. Ranucci's car was destroyed, along with damage to another family vehicle and a nearby house, according to multiple reports including Le Monde, CBS News, and India Times.

The blast's intensity raised alarms due to its potential danger, with Ranucci's investigative program reporting, "The force of the explosion was so strong that it could have killed anyone passing by at that moment." Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned the act as a "serious intimidation," reaffirming that "the freedom and independence of information are non-negotiable values of our democracies," as noted by CBS News and corroborated by Le Monde.

Ranucci, the lead anchor of RAI's "Report," has long been a target of threats due to his investigations into mafia connections within Italy, resulting in him living under police protection since 2021. He remarked on the escalating threats, revealing that mobsters had previously ordered a hit on him that was ultimately stopped. The incident has drawn widespread outrage and brought attention to the risks faced by journalists in Italy, especially those covering organized crime, as highlighted by both CBS News and India Times.

Italian authorities are treating the situation with urgency, exemplified by Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi's order for increased security measures for Ranucci. Furthermore, the involvement of anti-mafia prosecutors in the investigation underscores the seriousness of the threat to press freedom and public safety, as emphasized by CBS News and India Times.