Italy is requesting the extradition of more than 100 former South American leaders and their underlings over the disappearance, torture and death of Italians who were caught up in a crackdown on dissent in the 1970s and '80s, a prosecutor said Thursday according to The Associated Press. Authorities have made the requests for 139 people involved in the military dictatorships of Chile, Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay and accused in the kidnapping and murder of 25 Italian dissidents, said Giancarlo Capaldo, the lead prosecutor in the case. The suspects include Argentina's former junta leader Jorge Videla and Uruguay's former dictator Juan Bordaberry. Capaldo said he expects replies to the extradition requests from various governments in the coming months. But in an interview with The Associated Press in his office, he said court proceedings could go ahead even if the officials are not extradited, as Italian law allows suspects to be tried in absentia.
