Prosecutors in the northern Italian city of Pavia have filed an international arrest warrant for Shmuel Peleg, the maternal grandfather of Eitan Biran, the orphaned child who was the only survivor of the Mottarone mountain cable-car disaster in May, for allegedly having abducted the boy by taking him to Israel in September.
A warrant has also been issued for a 50-year-old Israeli man who allegedly drove the car in which Eitan was taken to the Swiss city of Lugano and then flown to Tel Aviv on a private jet.
But Israel does not extradite its own citizens, sources at the Italian justice ministry noted.
Eitan, who moved to Italy with his parents in 2018, had been put into the care of his Italian-based paternal aunt, Aya Biran, after the disaster by the Italian authorities.
The maternal side of the family was unhappy about this and a custody battle ensued.
Eitan's parents, great grandparents and two-year-old brother were among the 14 victims of the disaster.
The child was whisked away after being taken out by Peleg during a visit.
A Tel Aviv court recently ruled that the child must return to Italy and the care of his paternal aunt.
"We are waiting to see what will happen at the international level, i.e. the response of the Israeli authorities to the international arrest warrant," Pavia Prosecutor Mario Venditti told ANSA.
"Then we will proceed with the closure of the investigation and the request for a trial".
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