The Latest: Quake funeral underway; bishop urges courage

ASCOLI PICENO, Italy – The Latest on the Italian earthquake (all times local):

11:50 a.m.

A funeral has begun in Italy for some of the victims of an earthquake in Italy that devastated three towns this week, killing at least 290 people.

The funeral Mass was being celebrated by Bishop Giovanni D’Ercole in a community gym where 35 caskets were laid out. He urged the mourners, who wept and held each other, to find courage to rebuild their homes and communities.

D’Ercole told them: “Don’t be afraid to cry out your suffering but do not lose courage. Together we will rebuild our houses and church. Together, above all we will restore life to our communities, starting from our traditions and from the rubble of death. Together.”

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11:30 a.m.

Italian authorities say the death toll in an Italian earthquake has risen yet again as bodies continued to be recovered and now stands at 290.

The Civil Protection agency gave the updated figure late Saturday morning just ahead of a state funeral for some of the victims being attended by President Sergio Mattarella and Premier Matteo Renzi.

The worst hit town was Amatrice, which now has 230 confirmed deaths. It is there that the death toll has been rising.

Elsewhere, 11 were killed in Accumoli and 49 in Arquato del Tronto.

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9:10 a.m.

Italian authorities say the death toll in an Italian earthquake has risen to 284 people after three more bodies were recovered overnight from the rubble of Amatrice, the hilltop town that bore the brunt of the devastation.

The Civil Protection agency gave the updated figure on Saturday morning.

There were 224 deaths in Amatrice, with the rest in nearby towns.

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9:00 a.m.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella has visited Amatrice, a town devastated in the earthquake that hit central Italy this week and the place with the highest death toll.

Mattarella was guided by town mayor, Sergio Pirozzi, who showed him the extent of the damage. The president met and thanked rescue workers, who have been working against the clock since early Wednesday to save people trapped in rubble and recover the victims.

The president, who will later attend a state funeral for some of the victims, was taken only to the edge of the town, because it is too dangerous to enter the heart of the medieval town due to the extent of the destruction.

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8:30 a.m.

Residents of an Italian region devastated by an earthquake were rattled by a series of aftershocks overnight, the strongest measuring 4.2, as Italy began a day of national mourning on Saturday.

The national mourning will include a state funeral for some of the victims in Ascoli Piceno to be attended by Premier Matteo Renzi and President Sergio Mattarella.

Ahead of the funeral, caskets were lined up in a gym where mourners have been bidding farewell to loved ones, kneeling, crying and placing their hands on flower-covered caskets.

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This corrects the first name of Premier Sergio Mattarella