Rome (TDI): Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, said she and two of her ministers have been accused of complicity in Gaza genocide at the International Criminal Court (ICC), over Italy’s military support for Israel.
Speaking on state television RAI, Meloni said she has been accused in a complaint filed on October 1st, 2025.
The complaint also names Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, and possibly Roberto Cingolani, head of the defense and aerospace company Leonardo.
The complaint, signed by 50 legal scholars, activists, and public figures, argues that Italy’s supply of lethal arms to Israel makes the country complicit in “ongoing genocide” and “serious war crimes and crimes against humanity” against Palestinians.
Meloni characterized the complaint as unprecedented, saying, “I don’t think there is another case in the world or in history of a complaint of this kind.”
She also defended Italy’s conduct, asserting that Italy has not authorized new arms deliveries to Israel since October 7, 2023.
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According to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Italy was one of only three countries supplying “major conventional arms” to Israel between 2020 and 2024, providing light helicopters, naval guns, and components for F‑35 aircraft.
Italy’s government has responded that military exports to Israel after October 7, 2023, were halted, and that prior contracts included assurances that weapons would not be used against civilians.
The complaint comes as protests across Italy have intensified, with hundreds of thousands rallying against both Israel’s actions in Gaza and Meloni’s pro‑Israel stance. The ICC has not confirmed or opened a formal investigation into this complaint yet.
Meanwhile, it already holds arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on war crimes and crimes against humanity charges; not genocide.
In parallel, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is hearing a case brought by South Africa accusing Israel of violating the 1948 Genocide Convention.
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