A French court blocks the extradition of former Red Brigades members to Italy

A French appeals court on Wednesday rejected Italy’s request for the extradition of 10 former members of left-wing Italian extremist groups who were in exile in France for their involvement in violence decades ago.

The ultra-left Red Brigades and other armed groups sowed chaos in Italy during what is known as the “lead years” – in reference to the amount of bullets fired – from the late 1960s to the mid-1980s.

The violence left 360 dead and thousands injured.

The court based its decision, at least in part, on respect for private and family life, the court’s presiding judge said.

Most of the 10, aged 61 to 78, have lived in France for decades and during the hearings insisted on their links to France and criticized Italy’s “persecution”.

The verdict was greeted with relief by the former members, who fell into the arms of relatives and loved ones in the courtroom.

“I am very happy for my client,” said attorney Jean-Louis Chalanset, representing former Red Brigades member Enzo Calvitti. “I was afraid that he would end his days in prison.”

France has long served as a sanctuary for members of the Red Brigades under a policy of former Socialist President Francois Mitterrand, who offered them protection from extradition on condition they refrained from violence and were not accused of bloodshed.

But last year President Emmanuel Macron gave the green light for the detention and possible extradition of 10 convicted former members of the Red Brigades or other armed groups in a bid to end a longstanding nuisance in Franco-Italian relations.

“Sending me to die in prison at 70 would be medieval punishment,” Marina Petrella, 67, a former Red Brigades member, said before the verdict.

She said the procedures were “traumatic” for her two daughters and grandson after 30 years in France where she worked as a social worker.

“My life is in your hands because if I go back to Italy I will die in an Italian prison,” Narciso Manenti, 64, who has spent the past 40 years in France, also said before the verdict.

The cases of the eight men and two women are all different. Some have been convicted in absentia in Italy, while others have spent time in Italian prisons, while others have avoided time behind bars.

“Given the age of these people, accepting extradition is a death penalty in disguise,” said Irene Terrel, attorney for seven former members, ahead of the verdict.

But many in Italy believe the 10 should face Italian justice.

The 1970s were marked by violent social uprisings in Italy. Far-right groups carried out indiscriminate terrorist attacks in public areas to maintain a “strategy of tension” and force the emergence of an authoritarian regime.

Meanwhile, ultra-left revolutionary groups targeted assassinations of union members, judges, journalists, police officers and politicians.

The Red Brigades were the most notorious of the left and were blamed for hundreds of murders, including the kidnapping and assassination of Christian Democrat leader and former Prime Minister Aldo Moro in 1978.