The World Today
Jorge Néstor Tróccoli sentenced to life in prison in Italy for war crimes
Jorge Néstor Tróccoli , former commander of the Uruguayan Navy, was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Criminal Court of Rome , in a historic decision that marks a before and after in the search for justice for the crimes committed during the Uruguayan military dictatorship (1973-1985) .
The ruling, issued by the Third Chamber of the court , holds him responsible for the torture and murder of Elena Quinteros , Raffaella Giuliana Filippazzi and José Agustín Potenza , within the framework of Operation Condor , the network of repressive cooperation between dictatorships in the Southern Cone.
Details of the sentence against Jorge Néstor Tróccoli
According to the ruling, the Italian court found the evidence linking Tróccoli to the disappearance and death of the three victims to be "irrefutable." The judges emphasized that his role within the naval intelligence services was crucial to the functioning of the Uruguayan repressive apparatus.
Elena Quinteros, a teacher and activist with the People's Victory Party , was kidnapped in 1976 and last seen inside the Venezuelan embassy in Montevideo, where she had sought refuge. Filippazzi and Potenza, left-wing activists of Italian-Uruguayan origin, were kidnapped and murdered a year later, in 1977.
This is not the former military officer's first conviction: in 2021, the same Italian court had already sentenced him to life imprisonment for similar crimes. The current sentence reinforces the European justice system's commitment to the principle of universal jurisdiction for crimes against humanity .
Reactions to the ruling
The news sparked a wave of reactions in both Uruguay and Italy.
Attorney Alicia Mejía , representing Elena Quinteros's family, called the ruling "a moral and legal victory" and emphasized the importance of continuing to fight for memory and truth .
Organizations such as Mothers and Families of Disappeared Detainees celebrated the ruling and demanded that Uruguay move forward with the ongoing local proceedings.
"This is another step toward justice, but many perpetrators are still free," they stated in a public statement.
Human rights analysts, for their part, highlighted Italy's consistency in continuing to prosecute foreign military personnel involved in Operation Condor , a practice that allowed Latin American dictatorships to coordinate transnational kidnappings, torture, and murders.
Implications and perspectives
The conviction of Jorge Néstor Tróccoli could have concrete effects on other open cases in Latin America. Italian lawyers believe this ruling could facilitate further extraditions and prosecutions for similar crimes committed in Argentina, Chile, and Paraguay.
In Uruguay, the case rekindles the debate over impunity and the historical debt owed to the victims of the dictatorship. Despite progress in the search for the remains of the disappeared, more than 180 people remain unaccounted for.
The Human Rights Institute of the University of the Republic hailed the ruling as an essential step toward symbolic reparation and the consolidation of collective memory.
Memory, justice and the pending legacy
The case of Jorge Néstor Tróccoli has not only a legal impact, but also a symbolic one. It represents the persistence of the victims' families, who for decades faced institutional silence, judicial obstacles, and social indifference. Their constant struggle demonstrates that international justice can be an effective means when local systems fail to act with the necessary speed or determination.
In Uruguay, the judicial process remains slow and fragmented, but each ruling abroad strengthens the pressure for the country to move forward on its own ground. Various human rights groups maintain that new generations must commit to keeping the memory alive by researching, teaching, and speaking about these events responsibly.
The final conviction of Jorge Néstor Tróccoli leaves a profound lesson: state crimes do not expire, and the truth, even if it takes time, always emerges. Every sentence, every testimony, and every search strengthens the social pact with memory and justice.
