ROME- Italy and India are faced with mixed results in the latest rulings of the case of two Italian marines, Salvatore Girone and Massimiliano Latorre, who have been accused of killing two Indian fishermen off the south Indian coast.

 Italy breathed a sigh of relief when it heard that the trial will not take place in India under its jurisdiction following Italy's request for international arbitration. However, an appeal to the Hamburg-based International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) to bring back Girone has failed, as well as for the request of releasing the two pending trial. Girone has been under arrest in the Italian embassy in Delhi for three and a half years whilst Latorre was granted leave by India based on health grounds, and has been in Italy since last summer.

 The two marines are faced with murder charges after they opened fire on a fishing boat from an oil tanker they were guarding, killing two Indians 20 kilometres off the Kerala coast in February 2012. The two Italian marines claimed that they mistook the fishermen for pirates.

 The UN-commissioned sea law court also announced that it will not assume a role in the case henceforth, following the 21-member court’s vote of 15 in favour and six against. Trialling will be done entirely by the International Court of Justice, and the Hamburg court has asked Italy and India to refrain from legal action, which will “aggravate the dispute.”

 Although it is still unconfirmed whether Latorre will return to India and after his furlough at the end of the year, some Italians are positive regarding his stay. For example, according to Roberto Virzo of the Law department in Rome’s LUISS University, in light of the sea law tribunal’s decision to halt legal action from both parties, India may not be able to appeal for Latorre’s return.

 Girone’s father has expressed his discontent at the ruling’s result, saying that “we are a bit angry” and the result has left a bitter taste for the Italian government which hoped for a "different result" according toTransport Minister Graziano Delrio. Neverthless, the government remains positive in the face of the ruling, which the Foreign Ministry has dubbed “useful.”

 The impact of the sea law tribunal’s decisions will be evident on September 24, when Italy and India will present initial compliance reports. Italy will be backed by the EU, which will “closely follow the case, with close contact with the Italian government.” The EU has also called for a swift resolution to the case, respecting international laws and those involved.