The Enrica Lexie Incident (Italy v India), Provisional Measures, International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea

When the rights of states trump the rights of individualsThe Enrica Lexie Order promulgated on 24 August 20151The factsOn 15 February 2012, at about 16.30, two Italian marines were on the Italian-flagged oil tanker, MV Enrica Lexie, about 20.5 nautical miles off the coast of Kerala in southern India.

Chief Master Sergeant Massimiliano Latorre and Sergeant Salvatore Girone were on the ship as part of a “Vessel Protection Detachment” of six marines from the Italian Navy, deployed to protect it from pirate attacks. The Indian Ocean off Kerala was within the IMO-designated high-risk area for piracy.