A court in Italy ordered journalist to pay 5,000 euros as compensation to the Prime Minister, Georgia Melonibecause mocked her height on social media in what was defined as “body shaming”.

To Milan-based journalist Giulia Cortese, he was also fined €1,200 with a suspended sentence. The incident dates back to October 2021, a year before Meloni’s far-right coalition government came to power.

The controversy started when the 36-year-old journalist published on X a fake photo of Meloni with Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. Meloni responded by writing that it is about “fake photo” it was “unique gravity” and announced that he would take legal action against the journalist.

In two more tweets on the same day, Cortese made offensive posts about her height. “You don’t scare me, Georgia Meloni. Besides, you’re only 1.2 meters (4 feet) tall. I can’t even see you” wrote one of them.

Cortese, although acquitted of the tweet comparing Meloni to Mussolini, was convicted of the latter two as defamatory. “Exists [ένα] climate of persecution. I no longer feel I have the freedom to write about this government, because once you are identified as an unfit journalist for this government, they don’t let anything pass.”Cortese told the Guardian website.

The journalist can appealbut has not decided whether to proceed with the litigation. “Continuing risks costing me dearly and I don’t know how it will end,” he said.

Meloni’s lawyer stated that will donate the 5,000 euros to charity when the case is finalized and the money is paid.

According to various Italian news agencies, Meloni is 1.63 tall.

However, this is not the first time the Italian Prime Minister has taken action against a journalist or someone who has publicly criticized her. Since taking office, her government has been accused of strategically using defamation lawsuits to silence journalists and intellectuals.