The Italian government said Tuesday it has petitioned the United Nations over the case of two Italian marines accused of murder in India while awaiting charges for two years.
Foreign Minister Emma Bonino said Italy has "initiated contact" with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) over "the lack of charges" and the "restriction of freedom" placed on the marines - Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone - since the alleged crime, reports Italian news agency ANSA.
The pair has been living and working at the Italian embassy in India pending charges for allegedly killing Valentine and Ajesh Binki after opening fire on their fishing trawler while guarding the privately owned Italian-flagged oil-tanker MT Enrica Lexie off the coast of Kerala in February 2012.
