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Italy recalls ambassador to Brazil in terrorist extradition row

Other News Materials 10 June 2011 16:28 (UTC +04:00)
Italy on Friday recalled its ambassador to Brazil for consultations over the decision by Brazilian Supreme Court not to extradite an Italian former leftist terrorist convicted of four murders in his homeland.
Italy recalls ambassador to Brazil in terrorist extradition row

Italy on Friday recalled its ambassador to Brazil for consultations over the decision by Brazilian Supreme Court not to extradite an Italian former leftist terrorist convicted of four murders in his homeland, DPA reported.

On Thursday the Italian government strongly criticised the Brazilian ruling and said it would appeal against it with the International Court of Justice.

The 56-year-old Cesare Battisti has been released from prison and has indicated he intends to apply for Brazilian residence.

In its ruling, the Brazilian court confirmed the decision of former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who on his last day in office on December 31 refused to order Battisti's extradition.

In 2009, the same court ordered Battisti's extradition but left the final say to the president.

Battisti was a founding member of Armed Proletarians for Communism. In 1993, an Italian court convicted him of four murders committed in the 1970s and related to his political views. Battisti has denied committing the murders.

He escaped from an Italian prison in 1981 while being detained for being a member of an armed group and spent time in Mexico and France.

In France, he was shielded by the Mitterrand Doctrine, which restricted the extradition of left-wing Italian militants to Italy, but fled again when there was a change of policy.

In 2004, he went to Brazil, where he was detained in 2007.

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