Habish, who is wanted on war crimes charges by the ICC, was freed after an apparent technical issue with his case.

A Rome court of appeal ordered Almasri’s release due to a procedural issue regarding the failure to consult the justice minister before making the arrest.

“Njeem Osama Almasri Habish was located in Turin on 19 January and was successfully arrested,” the ICC said in a statement.

“The suspect was held in custody pending the completion of the procedures necessary for his surrender to the Court.

“At the request and in full respect of the Italian authorities, the Court has deliberately refrained from commenting publicly on the arrest.

“On January 21, without notice or consultation with the Court, Almasri was reportedly released and returned to Libya.

“The Court is seeking, and has not yet received, verification from the authorities on the steps taken.”

The Italian opposition has called on Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to explain to parliament why an alleged war criminal was freed and flown back home.

A spokesperson for Refugees in Libya, an organisation representing refugees, asylum seekers and migrants, said Almasri headed Tripoli’s infamous Mitiga detention centre where migrants, including children, were tortured and forced to fight.

The spokesperson, David Yambio, told online newspaper Fanpage.it on Thursday that, while he was detained at the Mitiga centre, he saw “men being burned and electrocuted, as well as beaten with weapons”.

“Many were forced to fight,” he continued.

“Between 2019 and 2020, I also saw children who passed through the centre being forced to fight in Libya’s civil war.

“I remember Almasri well, he was the chief, he was a torturer himself, he was there to order murders, to shoot, to reduce [inmates] to slavery.

“His role was clear, he headed Mitiga, as well as the centre of Jaded and other facilities,” Yambio told the online newspaper.

Another witness who was detained in Libyan prisons told Italian State broadcaster RAI on Wednesday that Almasri oversaw the Tripoli branch of the Reform and Rehabilitation Institution (RRI).

RRI is a notorious network of detention centres run by the government-backed Special Defence Force.

“I know him because I was in the prison in Zawiya,” said the witness.

“He is the head of the prison in Mitiga, as well as in Zawiya.

“He takes migrants from the sea and brings them to the prison.

“Then they must pay to get out.

“He is a trafficker.

“Everyone knows him, all the migrants in Libya.”

“What should I think about a government that says it is fighting human traffickers and then shakes hands with the architect of human trafficking?” Yambio asked during his interview with Fanpage.

“Can the Italian government say that it is defending law and order when it so willingly defends a war criminal?”

On Thursday, opposition members continued to slam the government, with the Green-Left Alliance (AVS) demanding the resignation of Justice Minister Carlo Nordio because of the technicality that facilitated Almasri’s release.

“Almasri is accused of crimes against humanity, murder, torture rape,” said Maria Chiara Gadda, the deputy whip of the centrist Italia Viva (IV) party led by ex-prime minister Matteo Renzi.

“His release is not a mistake, it is a choice that clarifies how migrant management is surrendered to third parties - certainly no Mattei Plan,” she added.

The Mattei Plan refers to the government’s ambitious plan seeking to create a new partnership with African countries to address the root causes of irregular migration.

AVS lawmakers led by leaders Angelo Bonelli and Nicola Fratoianni also staged a demonstration in front of the prime minister’s office, Palazzo Chigi.

“We are waiting for Nordio’s resignation, he lied to the country,” said Bonelli.

The procedural errors, he added, “are only an alibi to allow a human trafficker, a torturer to be released and even accompanied on a State flight” of the Italian secret services.

Elly Schlein, the leader of the largest member of the opposition, the Democratic Party (PD), urged Giorgia Meloni to report to parliament on the case.

“Giorgia Meloni must come and report to the House because it isn’t possible that Palazzo Chigi wasn’t directly involved in this terrible case,” Schlein told reporters at the House.

“She should stop hiding behind her ministers and take responsibility by coming and clarifying what happened and why, after declaring war on human traffickers, she allowed one to be released in Italy and sent directly back to Libya on an Italian plane,” noted the PD leader.

ANSA