Giulio Regeni: Italy has defended the decision of the key court in the murder case in Europe News

Rome, Italy – A judge in Rome has ruled that four agents of the Egyptian National Security Agency (NSA) should be tried for the kidnapping, torture and murder of an Italian student who was found dead outside Cairo five years ago.

Regeni, a 28-year-old doctoral student under investigation by Egyptian unions, disappeared in Cairo on January 25, 2016.

His body was found on the side of a highway nine days later with severe signs of torture.

The murder shocked Italy and called for the perpetrator to be brought to justice, and prosecutors accused Egyptian authorities of failing to cooperate.

Prosecutors research ended in December; They said they found “undoubted” evidence for the kidnapping of General Tariq Sabir, Colonel Usham Helmi, Colonel Athar Kamel Mohamed Ibrahim and Chief Magdi Ibrahim Abdelal Sharif.

Sharif is also being investigated for injuries and murders.

On Thursday, a Rome judge will decide whether the findings are strong enough to lead the trial, regardless of the presence of agents.

“This is unprecedented,” Hussein Baoumi, a researcher in Egypt, told Al Jazeera for Amnesty International.

“No case in recent history has been seen [NSA] to hold the agent accountable or prosecuted for torture, kidnapping and murder – even if absent.

“The use of torture by NSA officers has never been a secret, but this trial provides an opportunity to enter a debate in court.”

New witnesses

In December, prosecutors cited five key witnesses to build their case.

The testimony of a 15-year-old NSA employee described Regeni seeing the 13th office of the agency’s Lazougly office, an old villa that was often brought in by foreigners suspected of plotting against the country’s national security, according to an Italian court transcript.

Regeni was seen between January 28 and 29 with his handcuffs lying on the ground half-naked, tortured and deceived.

After appointing and implicating the four agents, about 10 other people approached the Italian prosecutor.

Three of those testimonies were deemed reliable and the case was officially added in mid-April, an Italian judicial source told Al Jazeera.

After spreading the news of the accusation, witnesses “dared … to come and tell what they know,” the source said.

One of those witnesses was a friend of Mohammed Abdallah, who was investigating Regeni, his union leader, as part of his thesis.

Witnesses told investigators he met Abdallah on Feb. 2, a day before Regeni’s body was found.

Abdallah told the witness that he was in the NSA office when he overheard a phone conversation between the two officials discussing Regeni’s death and how his body should be mutilated to disguise the murder as a result of a robbery, a judicial source said.

Egypt’s interior minister said in March 2016 that security forces had killed five members of a criminal gang in possession of some of the investigator’s belongings.

But Italian prosecutors covered up the claim.

Egyptian officials have denied involvement in the killings. At the end of December, prosecutors in Cairo he dismissed any charge against four officers.

Egypt’s interior minister said in March 2016 that security forces had killed five members of a criminal gang who owned some of the investigator’s belongings. [Egyptian Interior Ministry/AP]

What happens next?

Although the four suspects are found guilty, observers say Egypt is unlikely to cooperate.

“However, this trial is very important because it ultimately allows us to write about the event and who should be held accountable,” Antonella Massaro, a professor of criminal law at Roma Tre University, told Al Jazeera.

Regeni’s story has taken over the country for years.

Her parents have maintained an online campaign to put pressure on authorities accused of blinding their eyes while prioritizing economic interests.

Meanwhile, rights groups have long accused the government of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of allowing impunity by allowing the systematic use of torture, while failing to bring responsibilities to justice.

“The trial will unfortunately not have any effect on Sisi’s power or being in Egypt,” said Yezid Sayigh, a fellow at the Middle East Carnegie Center.

“It will not affect Italian relations either, as the Italian government has repeatedly shown that it will not allow the Regeni case to interfere with trade, investment and energy ties with Egypt.”

Since 2015, Rome and Cairo have strained economic relations, especially after the Italian oil and gas company Eni. He discovered the Zohr gas station in Egypt.

Italy also supplies arms to Egypt.

From the time Regeni disappeared until 2019, arms sales from Rome to Cairo jumped from $ 8.3 million to $ 980 million, according to parliamentary reports.

Awaiting Thursday’s decision, Amnesty’s Baoumi said: “It is very important that countries ensure respect for human rights in order to prevent other Regens.”