Italian prosecutors are investigating Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and two government ministers for repatriating a Libyan general wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC), Meloni said Tuesday.
Osama Elmasry Njeem, head of the Libyan judicial police, is accused by the Hague-based ICC of war crimes and crimes against humanity including torture, rape and murder. He was arrested earlier this month in the northern Italian city of Turin, where he had traveled to watch a football match involving the local Juventus team.
But an Italian court freed him on Jan. 21, ruling prosecutors had made a procedural error. He was subsequently repatriated to Libya on an Italian government plane, according to a Libyan government official, despite the ICC warrant for his arrest.
In a video posted on X, Meloni said she was being investigated “for the crimes of aiding and abetting … in connection with the repatriation of [Njeem].” She argued the ICC warrant had not been recognized by Italy’s courts and claimed she was the target of a left-wing conspiracy.
“I can’t be blackmailed, I can’t be intimidated,” Meloni added, suggesting the probe against her came from those who don’t want to see “Italy change, to become better.”
Justice Minister Carlo Nordio and Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi are also being investigated, she said.
Piantedosi said last week he had given the order to deport the Libyan warlord “for reasons of state security.”
Njeem’s release triggered a wave of outrage from Italy’s opposition, human rights groups and the ICC itself, which issued a statement reminding Rome of its obligation “to cooperate fully with the Court in its investigations and prosecutions of crimes.”
As a founding member of the ICC, Italy is required to hand over wanted individuals to the court for trial.
Meloni’s critics have accused her government of releasing Njeem to protect an agreement with Libya to block the departure of migrants crossing the Mediterranean. Ending illegal migration to Italy has been the main pillar of Meloni’s legislative agenda since she came to power in 2022.
Mediterranea Saving Humans, a migrant rescue NGO, said the Italian government’s “shameful protection” of Njeem demonstrates that its deal with Libya is “dangerous and criminal.”
Ben Munster contributed to this report.
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