Rome—The Italian police have arrested the head of Tripoli Judicial Police Brigadier General Osama Najim, known as Almasri, on Sunday in Turin, on an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC), according to news agencies.
The Communications Department of the Judicial Police (CDJP) condemned what it called a “the arbitrary arrest” and called on the Libyan authorities to “assume their responsibility for this shameful situation,” according to a statement issued on Monday on its Facebook platform.
Mr. Najim, who also acts as the director of the Tripoli Reform and Rehabilitation Institution (TRRI) known in the past by “Al-Jadyida Prison,” was arrested after an alleged tip-off from the Interpol. Najim has been affiliated with the Special Deterrence Force (Rada) in Tripoli. Neither the Italian nor the Libyan authorities have yet issued official clarifications about the arrest.
Citing a Turin prosecutor, La Repubblica daily reported that Najim was arrested in a hotel, and he had been with other Libyans. He arrived in Italy after entering the European Union via Germany, where he was on his way to attend a football match in Turin, according to Libyan media.
While some Human rights sources allege that the ICC has asked the Italian authorities to deport Najim, there are efforts being made to hand him over to Libyan authorities after conducting preliminary investigations with him in Rome. The CDJP has even stated on Monday and Tuesday on its Facebook platform that Najim has already returned safely back to Libya.
According to “Bawabat Al-Wasat,” although the ICC’s prosecutor did not mention Najim’s name directly, his name was in an announced “wanted” list resulted from a report by a Fact-Finding Committee formed for the years 2021 and 2023 by the Executive Council for Human Rights, on various individual and collective charges.
On 16 January 2025, the UN Security Council adopted resolution 2769 (2025), acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, reiterated that those individuals or entities determined to have violated the provisions of resolution 1970 (2011) are subject to designation.