The unsolved 2016 murder of Italian PhD student Giulio Regeni in Cairo, human rights, Libya and the role of Egypt in the MidEast peace process were on the agenda during a visit by Italy's undersecretary of state for foreign affairs Vincenzo Amendola, the foreign ministry said on Monday.
After attending the celebrations for the 75th anniversary of the battle of El Alamein, where he also met his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukri, Amendola held a round of talks with several deputy ministers and senior officials at the foreign ministry in Cairo aimed at boosting bilateral ties, the ministry stated.
During the talks, Amendola stressed that Italian public opinion and institutions were eager to see "positive developments arise from judicial cooperation on the barbaric killing of Giulio Regeni, in order to cast light on the truth of what really happened," the ministry said.
Italy in September returned its ambassador to Egypt, ending a 16-month standoff with the country over its failure to charge anyone with the abduction and fatal torturing of Giulio Regeni, whose mutilated body was found int a ditch outside Cairo in February last year, nine days after he vanished in the capital.
Amendola's talks with Egyptian officials also covered opportunities to further develop "the great potential of bilateral relations" and boost political dialogue in several key areas especially turmoil-hit Libya, Egypt's role in achieving peace between Israel and the Palestinians and its socio-economic development, said the ministry.
During his visit to Egypt, Amendola also met Arab League secretary-general Ahmed Aboul Gheit and discussed with him all the main regional 'dossiers' with a special focus on Libya, Syria, the Arab-Israeli peace process and Yemen, the ministry concluded.
