On August 12, Italian authorities announced the arrest of 40 people with links to terrorism activities. The raid was part of an operation to foil an alleged terror plot in Italy , and it came a day after the London plot was uncovered . In 2005, after the July bombings in London , similar raids were conducted in Italy and elsewhere in Europe, demonstrating the authorities’ fear of a potential copy cat scenario. Italy is stepping up its efforts to hinder terror activities; however, an extensive amnesty recently issued to about 5,000 prisoners in Italy could fail other counterterrorism efforts, as numerous Islamic extremists where among those released.
In addition to the 40 detained people, over 4,000 people were stopped for identification checks, resulting in numerous arrests for residence permit violation. Of those, 114 people received deportation orders. The operation included searching 15 homes of Pakistanis who were supposedly terrorism financers. Belgian authorities are allegedly investigating the Pakistanis for links to the terrorist group Laskar-e-Tayyaba in India (source).
The raids sparked widespread fury among minorities and immigrants throughout Italy. Dacia Valent, spokeswoman for the Islamic Anti-Defamation League said, “More than 4,000 people were stopped and humiliated to allow police to arrest 12 chicken thieves and 28 clandestine migrants” (source). In response, Interior Minister Giuliano Amato issued a statement saying that the raid was overtly aimed at violators of immigration laws and other crimes and not based on prejudice against Muslims. He added that the operation against the Pakistani individuals were a joint investigation with the Belgians who had evidence of terrorism financing (source).
Italy’s Public Order and Security Committee’s anti-terrorism committee, CASA, has been particularly active in 2006, with 107 threats investigated in just eight months. They have also arrested 618 people and have kept another 1,500 under supervision (source). However, their preemptive efforts are a stark contradiction to another maneuver carried out by authorities in Italy.
In an attempt to ease the pressure on Italy’s overcrowded prisons, the Italian government issued a mass pardon in early August. Prisoners serving three years or less were granted amnesty with the exception of people convicted of terrorism, mafia crimes, sexual violence, and usury (source). The action backfired, as a number of the released reportedly returned to the criminal underworld as soon as they were freed (source). But, most worrisome, at least six known Islamic extremists were released as well because their convictions were not explicitly terrorism-related. Among the six was 37-year old Tunisian national Lased Ben Heni who was convicted for criminal association with intent to traffic in arms, explosives, and chemical agents and for receiving and trafficking in false documents. He was purportedly member of a Milan-based terrorist network connected with al-Qaeda. After his pardon, Italy tried to deport him to Germany where he was denied entry (source). The Tunisian is now in a legal limbo since he has been legally released from jail and is awaiting deportation in a so-called temporary (equally overcrowded) waiting center, but no other government is willing to take him in.
The pardons are troubling, as Italy generally exercises good judgment in its counterterrorism efforts. According to Italian lawmakers, the individuals were convicted of comparably petty crimes, including arms smuggling and document forging, and have served less than three years; therefore, they qualified for the amnesty release. However, their previous history of extremist activities should have served as a warning. The Italian government’s contradictory actions points to a lack of coordination within its law-enforcement institutions. The latest raid may have been successful in its preventative purpose, but the rash amnesty grant in the preceding week could likely release equally dangerous individuals back into society.
