Some senators express dismay that Italy has neglected its obligations under the ICC to hand over suspects.
The Italian Minister of the Interior says that the Libyan is being detained on an international warrant for war crimes, and then unexpectedly released was quickly repatriated due to his “social danger”.
Osama Elmasry Njeem, also known as Osama Almasri Njeem, was arrested in Turin on Sunday under an arrest warrant issued by the Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC), which said he was suspected of crimes including murder, torture and rape of detainees in Libya.
However, he was released on Tuesday on a legal technicality and flown back to Tripoli on an Italian state plane.
The ICC demanded an explanation, saying it had not been consulted by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government.
Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi fielded sharp questions from opposition lawmakers during Thursday’s Senate session.
“After the non-confirmation of the arrest, … considering that the Libyan national … represented a social danger profile, … I issued an expulsion order for reasons of national security,” Piantedosi said.
Some senators expressed dismay that Italy had neglected its obligations to the court to hand over the suspects. They repeated their calls for Prime Minister Georgia Meloni to answer the questions of the MPs in an open session.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani dismissed the ICC’s objections, telling reporters that the court was “not the word of God. It is not the source of all truth.”
“Italy is a sovereign country and we make our own decisions,” he added.
Neem’s arrest and release comes about a week after Rome and Tripoli resumed direct flights between their two capitals after a ten-year hiatus.
Njeem is a brigadier general in the Libyan judicial police who the ICC said is suspected of crimes against humanity and war crimes at the Mitiga detention center in Tripoli.
Meloni’s government depends heavily on Libyan security forces to prevent would-be migrants from leaving the North African country and heading for southern Italy.
Rome has an agreement with the North African country – dating back to 2017 and renewed under Meloni’s government – to fund and train the Libyan coast guard.
Piantedosi told lawmakers during a Senate questions session that a Rome appeals court ordered Njeem’s release because they believe his arrest did not follow procedures.
The ICC said the crimes listed in the arrest warrant “were committed by Mr. Njeem personally, at his behest or with his assistance, by members of the Special Deterrence Force.”
Opposition parties said Piantedosi’s explanations were inadequate and called on Meloni to come to parliament to clarify them.
“You are bringing our country into complete shame. You talk about technicalities, but you made a precise political decision,” said Senator Giuseppe De Cristofaro from the Green-Left Alliance.
