Giulia Cecchettin: Slain Italian woman's funeral attended by thousands

Thousands have attended the funeral of a 22-year-old female student whose death prompted a period of national reflection in Italy.

Giulia Cecchettin was killed days before getting her university degree allegedly at the hands of her possessive ex-boyfriend in November.

The funeral service which happened in the city of Padua was broadcast live on state television.

Her death triggered major protests and calls for more protection for women.

The biomedical engineering student's ex-boyfriend, Filippo Turetta, reportedly could not accept that she had ended their relationship. He confessed to the murder after his arrest, according to media reports.

The image of Ms Cecchettin's empty desk on the day she should have graduated struck a chord with many Italian women who feel patriarchal attitudes are entrenched.

Ms Cecchettin's father and siblings outside Padua's Basilica of Santa Giustina

In Rome, students and academics also mourned on Tuesday

Ms Cecchettin's father, Gino, made an emotional plea during the service for his daughter's death to become a turning point in ending the abuse and killing of women.

The service concluded with mourners shaking their keys as the coffin left the church, a symbolic call for violence not to be tolerated in silence.

Keys were rattled in Rome too

The funeral in Padua was attended by thousands including students, public authorities and ordinary Italians

The case has dominated Italian headlines in recent weeks amid large demonstrations in cities across the country leading Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to vow to step up protection for women.

Italy's first female prime minister promised a new educational campaign in schools to combat what she describe as Italy's still-pervasive culture of misogynistic violence.