Can Italy’s Meloni Prevail Against the International Criminal Court and a Prosecutor Bent on Overturning Her Mandate?

Can Prime Minister Meloni prevail against the International Criminal Court and a domestic prosecutor bent on overturning her mandate? And does it matter that national security hangs in the balance?Signora Meloni may be Europe’s most powerful leader, but even Italy’s Iron Lady isn’t immune to the slings, arrows and indictments of a weaponized global judiciary — as well as domestic courtroom magistrates wielding political axes.After the ICC launched a probe of the Italian government’s deportation of a Libyan judicial police chief accused of torture, Osama Njeem Almasri, to his homeland, Rome’s chief prosecutor, Francesco Lo Voi, piled on with a fresh proceeding.The issue is that Mr. Almasri, who had been detained at Turin on a warrant issued by the ICC, was released days later. Seizing on the the Meloni government’s decision not to extradite Mr. Almasri to the ICC’s court in the Netherlands, Mr. Lo Voi opened an investigation of the prime minister, her Justice and Interior ministers, and the cabinet undersecretary for intelligence matters.Prime Minister Meloni at Villa Doria Pamphilj on September 16, 2024 at Rome. Phil Noble – WPA Pool/Getty ImagesMr. Lo Voi has charged the Administration with allegedly aiding and abetting a crime, adding embezzlement to the specious indictment. When it comes to Italy’s center-right government, the opposition never relents in its drive to oust the Magic Boot’s legitimately-elected premier.To topple such a popular and efficacious prime minister, these enemies of the will of the people engage in an Antonio Gramsci-like war on many fronts — including the judiciary. Recognizing Mr. Lo Voi’s slick political ploy, Signora Meloni responded immediately in a video on her Facebook profile:“I will not be blackmailed, I will not allow myself to be intimidated, which may be why I am, let’s say, disliked by those who do not want Italy to change and become better.”And therein lies the crux of the assault on the Premier’s government. Signora Meloni explained how the Prosecutor’s decision was “damaging to the nation” and “to its opportunities.” Extraditing Mr. Almasri to the tribunal at the Hague would have jeopardized ties with the Libyan coast guard, potentially resulting in a wave of illegal migrants flooding across the Mediterranean.Tellingly, Mr. Lo Voi’s indictments were issued after a complaint filed by a former center-left justice undersecretary, Luigi Li Gotti.“I have serious reservations about the Court’s conduct in this matter. Perhaps an inquiry should be launched into the ICC itself to clarify its actions,” said the deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Antonio Tajani.A scene from the Italian film ‘lo Capitano,’ depicting the journey of migrants to Italy from Senegal. Greta De Lazzaris/Archimede via APAs it turns out, the center-right members of Italy’s High Council of the Judiciary — the Consiglio superiore della magistratura, a self-governing body of the judiciary empowered by the Italian Constitution — have demanded that disciplinary actions be taken against Mr. Lo Voi. Apparently, Mr. Lo Voi leaked a document from the Dipartimento delle Informazioni per la Sicurezza, the Department for Information and Security, that was pertinent to the Almasri deportation. Mr. Lo Voi reportedly disclosed the highly classified document to the daily newspaper Domani.As Ansa reported, the DIS “filed a complaint with prosecutors in Perugia against the Rome Public Prosecutor’s Office headed by Lo Voi over the leaking of a confidential report.”The former prime minister and current head of the populist Movimento Cinque Stelle, or Five Stars Movement, Giuseppe “Giuseppi” Conte, claims that “What the premier’s office is doing seems to me to be an act of institutional bullying that must be rejected.”Nevertheless, Signora Meloni and her conservative allies are circling the wagons — and look to prevail. “We are faced with yet another example of politicized justice that aims to attack the Meloni government,” thundered the leader in the Senate of Ms. Meloni’s Fratelli d’Italia party, Lucio Malan.To quote Vice President Vance — by way of a Harvard professor of constitutional law, Adrian Vermeule: “Judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power.” And to paraphrase George Orwell, “Italians sleep soundly in their beds, because rough men stand ready in the night to do what is necessary to protect the Seed of Aeneas.”But even more than national security is at stake: Migration, prosperity, energy, war and peace. While the magistrates and the ICC are playing checkers, Signora Meloni is playing tridimensional chess, forging an overarching framework for implementing and achieving Italy’s 21st-century vision.

Can Italy’s Meloni Prevail Against the International Criminal Court and a Prosecutor Bent on Overturning Her Mandate?

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