Matteo Salvini, Italy’s hardline interior minister, has called for three young men who allegedly gang-raped an American teenager in Sicily to be chemically castrated if convicted.

The three men have been arrested on suspicion of raping the 18-year-old, who was working as a babysitter in Catania, on the east coast of Sicily.

The three men allegedly met her in a bar, plied her with drinks and then offered to escort her to another bar.

Instead, they reportedly bundled her into a car, drove her to a deserted street and raped her in turn.

The men allegedly filmed the abuse and later sent her a clip of the footage via mobile phone.

“For the worms in Catania who raped a tourist, no leniency – chemical castration,” Mr Salvini, a prolific user of social media, wrote on his Twitter account.

The alleged gang rape took place on March 15, when the young woman was on a night out with a friend and met the local men in a bar.