The case involves a Libyan general who was wanted by the ICC at The Hague for alleged crimes against humanity, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
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Osama Almasri Najim, also known as Almasri, the former chief of Libya’s judicial police, was arrested in November in Tripoli, Libya. He is accused of torturing prisoners, leading to the death of one. Najim was arrested in Turin, Italy, on the ICC warrant but was released two days later and flown to Tripoli on an Italian air force plane, The Guardian reported.
The ICC said, “a representative of Italy was invited to the April 1, 2026, meeting of the Bureau of the Assembly to discuss the implications of the Court’s decision regarding its non-cooperation and to present its views on how it would cooperate with the Court in the future.”
It’s unclear if an Italian representative appeared.
The ICC said the decision to refer Italy to the Assembly of States Parties was made Jan. 26.
The Assembly of States Parties is the management oversight and legislative body of the ICC.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has said Najim was quickly sent back to Libya because he was a risk to Italy’s national security.
But some critics said her administration was pandering to Libya because the country helps stop the flow of migrants toward Italy, The Guardian reported.
Though Libya is not a part of the Rome statute — the founding treaty of the ICC — in May it accepted the authority of the ICC to investigate the alleged war crimes.
Meloni’s opposition criticized her after Najim was arrested in November.
Antonella Forattini, a politician in Italy’s Democratic party, said it was “a stain on our institutions and Italy’s image around the world. Libya is now demonstrating that it is ahead of our country in defending justice and legality.”
Former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte called the issue “a humiliation for the Meloni government.”
Elly Schlein, leader of the Democratic party, said: “The Libyan authorities ordered Almasri’s arrest on charges of torture and murder … the same criminal that [the Italian government] freed and escorted home on a government flight. This is a disgrace at an international level for which our government must apologize to Italians.”
