War crime suspect Osama Najeem released by Italy and returned to Tripoli

Jan 21, 2025 | International actors

On 21 January in the evening, Osama Najeem (aka al-Masri) was released by the Italian authorities and flown back to Tripoli on board a business jet belonging to the Italian government. He was given a tri-umphant welcome by his supporters in Tripoli-Mitiga.

Social media reported that Attorney General al-Sadiq al-Sour had intervened in Italy for the release of Najeem.

The official reason given was that the Rome Court of Appeal had ordered the release of Najeem and his return to Libya based on a technicality. The court ruled that the warrant for Najeem’s arrest was im-properly validated because the Turin-based branch of the General Investigations and Special Operations Division (DIGOS – Divisione Investigazioni Generali e Operazioni Speciali, belongs to the Polizia di Stato / State Police) failed to notify the Ministry of Justice prior to his arrest, constituting a procedural error. The Minister of Justice, Carlo Nordio, should have been informed in advance, since the Ministry of Jus-tice handles all relations with the International Criminal Court (ICC). Najeem was released without prior notice or consultation with the ICC.

On 22 January, the ICC reminded Italy of its obligation to fully cooperate with the Court and its prose-cutions. The Court asked Rome for information about what exactly had happened and on what the Ital-ian authorities had done. According to the ICC, Najeem is accused of murder, rape and sexual violence, and torture. The alleged crimes were committed against detainees because of their religion, perceived immoral or un-Islamic behaviour, or alleged support for or affiliation with other armed groups.

Several Italian opposition lawmakers and human rights organizations heavily criticized the release. Nordio was questioned about Najeem’s release during a previously scheduled appearance before the Senate. Opposition lawmakers from several parties demanded clarity. The Democratic Party called on Italian PM Giorgia Meloni to answer specifically in parliament about the case, saying it raised ‘serious questions’ given the known abuses in Libyan prisons of which Najeem is accused. They said it was cru-cial to understand why Najeem was released with such urgency despite the international arrest war-rant, claiming the decision appeared to be political.

Italian MoI Matteo Piantedosi said that the reason for the swift repatriation of Najeem after his re-lease was his profile of ‘social dangerousness’. Therefore, he adopted an expulsion order for reasons of state security.

On 23 January, Deputy PM and Minister of Foreign Affairs Antonio Tajani said to journalists, ‘The Hague is not the Gospel. It’s not the Mouth of Truth.’ He stated that it is possible to have different opinions. Italy is not in check by anyone. It is a sovereign country and carries out its policy.

On 25 January, PM Meloni demanded clarification from the ICC about why it took months to issue this arrest warrant at a time when Najeem crossed three European countries. She stressed that Najeem was released on the basis of a decision by the Court of Appeal in Rome, not by the government. She also explained that the use of a government plane to return him to Tripoli was due to the fact that he was considered dangerous, which precluded his return on a commercial flight.

On the same day, UNSMIL said it was alarmed over the gravity of crimes listed in the ICC arrest warrant against Osama Najeem. As the accused was sent back to Libya, UNSMIL called on Libyan authorities to arrest him and initiate an investigation into these crimes with a view to ensuring full accountability, or to transfer him to the ICC.