Edward Marchesi On September 28, the Assize Court in Rome issued a historic ruling: three members of the Egyptian security services were found guilty of kidnapping and sentenced to ten years in prison for the case of Italian researcher Giulio Regeni, killed in Cairo in 2016. Major Magdi Ibrahim Abdelal Sharif, Colonels Uhsam Helmi and Athar Kamel Mohamed were found responsible, while General Tariq Sabir was acquitted.
Details of the first sentence and compensation
In addition to the prison sentence, the Court ordered provisional compensation: €200 to each of Regeni's parents, €100 to his sister Irene, and €150 to the Office of the Prime Minister, located at Palazzo Chigi. The State Attorney's Office will now have to locate the three convicted men to enforce their payment of the agreed sums.
The decision has been called “historic” by the prosecutor, but has already been labelled “limited” by the Foreign Minister, who stressed that the conviction does not imply responsibility for the entire Egyptian regime.
The prospects of the appeal and procedural obstacles
The defendants' public defenders, who were absent during the trial, have announced their intention to appeal.
The absence of Sharif, Helmi, and Mohamed complicates the procedure, because the Cartabia reform (Article 581) requires a special power of attorney signed by the defendants to allow their lawyer to appeal the sentence. The lawyers argue that this requirement violates the right to defense, opening the door to a constitutional challenge before the Constitutional Court.
Request for constitutional legitimacy
In their preliminary appeal, the defense intends to ask the judge to raise the constitutional question of compliance with Article 581, accusing the provision of creating a "bottleneck" for inactive defendants. If the Constitutional Court accepts the issue, the appeal could be further delayed, as the Supreme Court 's decision would be binding on all lower courts.
Prescription risk and time scenarios
The statute of limitations for kidnapping is twelve and a half years from the commission of the crime, set to August 2, 2028 (starting from January 2016). However, the proceedings have been interrupted several times: first by the defendants' absence (April 2022-2023) and then by the constitutional issue resolved in the 2026 ruling. These "stop-and-go" measures would move the effective statute of limitations to around mid-2030 , making the speed of the appeal crucial to prevent the conviction from becoming statute-barred.
Political and diplomatic reactions
Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani recalled the words, "We'll see what happens in the second and third instance," and maintained that the conviction only concerns the three individuals, not the Egyptian state. Democratic Party Secretary Elly Schlein called these remarks "serious words," emphasizing the responsibility of the al-Sisi regime. Some opposition MPs also called for the minister's resignation, accusing him of underestimating the gravity of the case.