President Sergio Mattarella on Thursday confirmed the commitment to resolving the case of two Italian servicemen caught up in a judicial dispute with India over the shooting deaths of two Indian fishermen while they were an international anti-piracy mission four years ago. "I express my closeness to Salvatore Girone and Massimiliano Latorre and I confirm the commitment to resolving a dispute that has dragged on for too long," Mattarella said.
India accuses Girone and Latorre of murdering the fishermen in February 2012 and wants to try them, even if no formal charges have been brought.
However, Italy has repeatedly contested India's jurisdiction amid long delays and last year it took the case to an international court of arbitration in The Hague. Aside from a few short permits Girone has been held in India since the incident. Latorre is in Italy after suffering a stroke in 2014, but the leave India granted him runs out April 30.
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