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Italy claims ICC mishandled Libyan warlord's arrest warrant

Published

1 year ago

February 5, 2025

Italy claims ICC mishandled Libyan warlord's arrest warrant

Carlo Nordio argued that the ICC’s arrest warrant contained contradictions and procedural flaws, leading Italy’s courts to order Ossama al-Masri’s release.

Italy’s justice minister vigorously defended the government’s decision to repatriate a Libyan warlord wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC), arguing on Wednesday that the court itself had made an “immense mess” of the case with an inconsistent and flawed arrest warrant.

Carlo Nordio told the lower house of the Italian parliament that he had acted cautiously regarding the 18 January warrant against Ossama Anjiem, also known as Ossama al-Masri, who is accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Nordio said the Hague-based court had later “corrected, or rather completely overturned, the previous warrant” by amending the timeframe of al-Masri’s alleged offences.

“The court itself detected the errors and attempted to amend them five days later, because it realised that an immense mess was made,” Nordio told his colleagues.

The Italian government has faced sharp criticism from the ICC, human rights organisations, and opposition politicians for releasing al-Masri from detention on 21 January and deporting him to Libya on an Italian military aircraft.

Al-Masri was detained in Turin on 19 January, a day after arriving from Germany to watch a football match. He heads the Tripoli branch of the Reform and Rehabilitation Institution, a network of detention centres controlled by the government-backed Special Defence Force.

The ICC warrant, published on the court’s website, accuses al-Masri of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed at Mitiga prison in Libya from 2015 onwards, including murder, torture, rape, and sexual violence — offences that carry a life sentence.

However, the Italian government insists that Rome’s court of appeal ordered his release due to a technical issue in how the ICC warrant was transmitted, as it initially bypassed the Italian justice ministry.

Nordio reiterated this argument, stating he had only received an “informal email of a few lines” from Interpol three hours after al-Masri’s arrest. He also pointed to contradictions in the original warrant, which initially stated the crimes occurred between 2015 and 2024, but in its conclusions, referred to offences committed from “2011 onwards”.

“An irreconcilable contradiction emerges regarding an essential element of the arrestee’s criminal conduct, regarding the time of the crime committed,” Nordio added.

However, when the ICC publicly unsealed the warrant on 24 January, it issued an amended version to “correct certain typographical and clerical errors”. The updated document confirmed the timeframe as 2015-2024.

Accusations of breaching ICC obligations

Human rights groups have condemned Italy’s decision to repatriate al-Masri, calling it a major violation of its responsibilities as a founding member of the ICC.

Under Article 89 of the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the court in 1998, signatories are obligated to comply with arrest and surrender requests.

Opposition lawmakers have seized on the controversy to criticise Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, demanding she personally address parliament on the matter. During Wednesday’s session, they held up placards reading: “Meloni, patriot at large”.

Italy has strong ties with Libya’s internationally recognised government, whose help it relies on to curb migration across the Mediterranean from the North African coast.

Critics have accused Meloni’s government of capitulating to pressure from Libyan militias, allegedly out of fears that had al-Masri been handed over to the ICC, they would retaliate by increasing the number of migrant boats sent towards Italy.

However, Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi, who also addressed parliament on Wednesday, dismissed any suggestion that al-Masri had acted as a government intermediary on migration issues. He also denied that Italy had received threats in connection with his arrest.

Opposition leader Elly Schlein of the Democratic Party sharply criticised Nordio’s defence, arguing that his legal justifications for dismissing the ICC warrant were misplaced.

“Minister Nordio, you didn’t speak to this chamber as a minister, but as the defence lawyer of a torturer,” Schlein said.

Nordio’s critique of the ICC aligns with the government’s broader attempt to shift focus onto the judiciary’s handling of the case. Last week, Rome’s chief prosecutor informed Meloni, Nordio, Piantedosi, and another senior official that they were under investigation for allegedly facilitating irregular migration by repatriating al-Masri.

Meloni has spent days denouncing what she describes as political interference from Italy’s judiciary and defending the government’s decision, framing it as a matter of national security.

“When the security of the nation and the interests of Italians are in play, there is no room for backing down,” she wrote on X on 29 January.

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World

Video: Humpback Whale Stranded Off German Coast Is Freed by Rescuers

Published

8 hours ago

March 28, 2026

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Video: Humpback Whale Stranded Off German Coast Is Freed by Rescuers

new video loaded: Humpback Whale Stranded Off German Coast Is Freed by Rescuers

In a last-ditch effort, rescuers were at last able to free a 40-foot humpback whale that had been stuck in shallow waters near the coast of Germany for four days.

By Axel Boada

March 27, 2026

World

Russian man who assaulted woman during Barron Trump FaceTime call sentenced to 4 years

Published

10 hours ago

March 28, 2026

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Russian man who assaulted woman during Barron Trump FaceTime call sentenced to 4 years

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A Russian man convicted of assaulting a woman in London in an attack witnessed by Barron Trump, President Donald Trump’s youngest son, on a video call was sentenced to four years in prison by a London court on Friday.

Matvei Rumiantsev, 23, an MMA fighter, was convicted by a jury on Jan. 28 of assault with bodily harm but was acquitted of rape and choking charges. He was also convicted of perverting the course of justice stemming from a letter he sent the woman from jail asking her to retract her allegations.

After the assault, Rumiantsev admitted he was jealous of his girlfriend’s friendship with the 19-year-old son of President Donald Trump.

BARRON TRUMP REPORTEDLY SAVED WOMAN’S LIFE AFTER WITNESSING VIOLENT ASSAULT ON FACETIME CALL

Barron Trump attends inauguration ceremonies in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on Jan. 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Lamarque/Pool/Getty Images)

“Your lack of insight and empathy was apparent at trial,” Justice Joel Bennathan said. “You continue to try to blame the complainant for everything that has happened.”

Trump told investigators he had placed a late-night FaceTime call to the woman, whom he had met on social media, and had been startled when the call had been briefly answered by a shirtless man on Jan. 18, 2025.

“That view lasted maybe one second and I was racing with adrenaline,” Barron Trump said. “The camera was then flipped to the victim getting hit while crying, stating something in Russian.”

BARRON TRUMP SPOTTED ON NYU CAMPUS FOR FIRST TIME SINCE INAUGURATION

Barron Trump looks on ahead of the Presidential Inauguration of Donald Trump at the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 20, 2025. (KEVIN LAMARQUE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Barron Trump called the police in London.

“It’s really an emergency … I’m calling from the U.S., uh, I just got a call from a girl, you know, she’s getting beat up,” he told an operator.

Police responded to the address and arrested Rumiantsev, a London-based receptionist.

At his trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court, Rumiantsev was acquitted of rape and choking related to the attack, as well as a separate rape and assault allegation from November 2024.

His attorney, Sasha Wass, said that Trump wasn’t aware the woman had a boyfriend and questioned how much he could have seen in just a few seconds of video.

Barron Trump watches as his father, President Donald Trump attends an indoor Presidential Inauguration parade event at Capital One Arena, in Washington, Jan. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

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Trump never testified in the case. However, the judge praised him for his quick-thinking actions.

“Mr, Trump properly and responsibly, despite being in the United States, made sure the emergency services here were called, and he told them what he had seen,” he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

World

EU Parliament unblocks key political hurdle in digital euro talks

Published

11 hours ago

March 28, 2026

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EU Parliament unblocks key political hurdle in digital euro talks

Published on
27/03/2026 – 17:47 GMT+1

EU lawmakers have overcome a key political hurdle in the negotiations of digital euro, making the project closer to approval, according to a draft text seen by Euronews.

The Parliamentary rapporteurs involved in the legislation have found an agreement on the design of the digital euro, which will be able to function both online and offline.

The digital euro would be an electronic form of cash issued by the European Central Bank, designed to sit alongside banknotes and the payments services offered by commercial banks.

It has taken on new political weight as economic tensions between the EU and the US sharpen the debate over Europe’s reliance on American payment giants, such as Visa and Mastercard.

Under the European Commission’s proposal, digital euro users would have a wallet for both online and offline payments, with transactions designed so they are not trackable.

The situation in Parliament changed on Wednesday evening, when the centre-right politician Fernando Navarrete, who is the leading rapporteur on the file, announced the withdrawal of his position to reduce the scope of the digital euro to offline use only.

His position blocked the advancement of negotiations for months, jeopardising the whole legislative process, according to three sources familiar with the negotiations.

The political deadlock has pushed EU leaders to accelerate progress on the digital euro. At the European Council meeting on 19 March, they set a goal to have the digital euro legislation approved by the end of 2026.

With the Council, representing EU countries, having already adopted its position, the European Parliament is now the only institution left to advance the law.

“Thanks to our amendments and firm stance, we have finally broken the political deadlock on the digital euro. The distinction between online and offline has been removed, and it is now established as a single payment system,” Pasquale Tridico, the rapporteur for The Left, told Euronews.

However, lawmakers still need to agree on two key aspects: the “hold limits” and the “compensation.”

The hold limits determine the maximum amount a user can store in a digital euro wallet, while compensation sets out a model for reimbursing commercial banks that provide digital euro services.

Although negotiations are not yet complete, the text is expected to be voted on in the Parliament’s economy committee before the summer, according to a source familiar with the matter.