Writer's acquittal in Turin-Lyon rail line case a victory for free speech

Acclaimed Italian novelist Erri De Luca cleared of inciting environmental activists to sabotage controversial Alpine rail project

An acclaimed Italian writer and activist was acquitted of incitement to damage property by a court in Turin on Monday, in what is considered a major victory for free speech advocates and critics of a controversial multibillion-euro high-speed rail line at the centre of the case.

Supporters of Erri De Luca broke into applause after judge Immacolata Iadeluca ruled that the 65-year-old Neapolitan writer was not guilty of incitement, bringing to an end a case that began in 2013, when De Luca said in two separate interviews that it was legitimate to sabotage the rail line between Italy and France known as the TAV.