Return to Italy delayed for former Five Star Movement lawmaker hospitalized in Cuba

Alessandro Di Battista’s return to Italy has been postponed, with no new date announced, after the former Five Star Movement lawmaker was hospitalized in Cuba following a serious health problem.

The update came from Schierarsi, the association founded by Di Battista. “Alessandro Di Battista’s return has been postponed. We ask everyone to maintain the utmost discretion and prudence in sharing information while awaiting further updates,” the organization said in a brief message posted on social media.

Di Battista was in Cuba working on a report for the Italian newspaper Il Fatto Quotidiano. He was admitted to hospital on Aug. 28 in serious condition after experiencing severe headaches and a sudden illness. His return had been scheduled for Saturday aboard an air ambulance, after he said several days earlier that he was feeling better and hoped to leave Cuba for Italy.

No reason has been given for the postponement, and no new date has been announced for a possible transfer. During his hospitalization, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani contacted Di Battista and Italy’s diplomatic representation in Cuba to check on his condition and ensure that necessary assistance was available.

The 48-year-old Roman helped drive the rise of the populist Five Star Movement and won a seat in parliament in 2013. He later left frontline politics to travel around the world and broke with the movement after it joined a national unity government led by banker Mario Draghi in 2021, during the pandemic.

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Alessandro Di Battista’s return has been postponed. We ask everyone to maintain the utmost discretion and prudence in sharing information while awaiting further updates.