Expulsion of suspected terrorists - obligation of non-refoulement - diplomatic assurances - absolute prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment

In the Saadi v. Italy, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) held that the deportation of Nassim Saadi to Tunisia would constitute a breach of Italy's positive obligations under Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The ECHR reaffirmed the long-established principle that Article 3 prohibits the transfer of an individual to a country where there is a "real risk" that he will be subjected to torture or inhuman punishment. Since Article 3 prohibition is absolute, the danger that an individual might pose to the community cannot be taken into account when assessing the risk to the individual upon transfer.