[JURIST] Italian police have arrested former Uruguayan naval intelligence officer Nestor Jorge Fernandez Troccoli for crimes relating to the kidnapping and murder of Italian citizens and others who opposed South American military dictators during the 1980s, according to Italian media reports Monday. The Italian government has issued over 140 arrest warrants for various members of the dictatorships who coordinated their efforts at suppressing dissidents in what was called Operation Condor [BBC backgrounder; JURIST news archive]. Italian officials have also asked Argentina to extradite Argentina's former military leader Jorge Videla for crimes connected to Argentina's Dirty War [Global Security backgrounder].

The Dirty War (1976-1983) was a seven-year campaign by the Argentinian government to suppress Videla's opponents. It has been estimated that 30,000 people were kidnapped, tortured, or killed during the Dirty War. In March, a court in Rome convicted in absentia five former officers of the Argentinian military on charges of torturing, kidnapping and murdering three Italian citizens during Dirty War operations, sentencing them to life imprisonment [JURIST report]. AP has more.