ROME - In one of his first acts since taking office, Italy's President sparked a political maelstrom by pardoning a left-wing radical convicted for murdering a police chief in 1972.
The decision by former communist Giorgio Napolitano to pardon Ovidio Bompressi outraged the Opposition and paved the way for the pardon of Adriano Sofri, also convicted for the killing.
Although police commissioner Luigi Calabresi died more than three decades ago, the case is one of the most divisive in Italy's post-war history and still subject to fierce debate.
Italy's Government requested a pardon for Bompressi and said it would soon do the same for Sofri, 63.
A leader of the defunct revolutionary group Lotta Continua (Continuous Fight), Sofri was sentenced for the murder in 1997 with Bompressi to 22 years in prison. They have both been released for health reasons.
"We hope that this isn't a 'red' clemency," said Alessandra Mussolini, a far-right politician and the granddaughter of former fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.
The case threatens to fuel criticism that the "impartial" president is anything but.
- REUTERS
Left-wing radicals freed in Italy
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