Italian Marines to Return to India for Trial

Italy: Marines to Return for Indian Trial

Italy said Thursday that it would return to India two marines facing murder charges in the shooting deaths of two Indian fishermen. The announcement reversed an earlier decision by the Foreign Ministry saying the pair would not return as agreed when they were allowed to go back home to vote in Italian elections. The case has increased tensions between India and Italy, and India’s Supreme Court had prevented the Italian ambassador from leaving India. The marines, who were serving on a cargo ship off India’s coast last year, are accused of killing the fishermen, whom they said they mistook for pirates. Italy says that the shooting happened in international waters and that it should have jurisdiction.

A version of this brief appeared in print on March 22, 2013, on page A6 of the New York edition with the headline: Italy: Marines to Return for Indian Trial.