Italian PM attacks judges over probe

Italy's Giorgia Meloni insisted on Thursday that a probe into her role in the release of a Libyan war crime suspect was politically motivated, fuelling a furious debate.

The far-right prime minister this week announced that she and two senior ministers were under investigation over the release of Osama Almasri Najim, the head of Libya's judicial police who is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Najim's case had already caused a major political row in Italy, with opposition parties demanding answers about how a man wanted on charges including murder, rape and torture relating to his management of Libya's Mitiga Prison had been set free.

Meloni appeared to be referring to a notification she received of a complaint passed by a Rome prosecutor to a special court that considers cases against ministers.

Legal organisations are divided over whether the prosecutor was obliged to pass on the complaint, made by a lawyer, or could have rejected it. But Meloni insisted Thursday that passing it to the court was "clearly a deliberate act. Everyone knows that the prosecutors of these things have their discretion".

Addressing an event in Milan via videolink, she said news of the investigation had damaged Italy's image on the international stage.