Iran expected to dominate G8 meeting in Italy

Italy hopes foreign ministers of the industrialized Group of Eight meeting Thursday will send Iran a "tough" message over its violent crackdown on protesters, the foreign minister said.

Italy had originally invited Iran to attend the three-day gathering of industrialized nations in Trieste, northern Italy, as a special guest, arguing that Tehran could have an important role to play in stabilizing Afghanistan _ a key focus of the meeting.

But Rome retracted the invitation after Tehran failed to respond and after days of violent clashes with demonstrators protesting Iran's disputed June 12 elections.

Italian Foreign Minister Franco …