Italy's Supreme Court on Wednesday approved the extradition to Spain of an Egyptian national suspected of playing a key role in the March 11 train bombings in Madrid.  

Rabei Osman Sayed Ahmed, also known as Mohamed the Egyptian, was arrested in Milan on June 7.

On July 30, a Milan appeals court green-lighted an extradition request filed by Spain but Ahmed appealed against the decision.

Italy's Supreme Court upheld the lower court's verdict, rejecting the suspect's argument that his defense rights would be undermined if he were returned to Spain.

Italian Justice Minister Roberto Castelli, who is required to sign the extradition order, recently stressed Italy's willingness to comply with Spain's request.

Italian police arrested 33-year-old Ahmed as part of a Europe-wide operation stemming from investigations by Spanish prosecutors into the Madrid terror attack.

The devastating bomb attacks on four trains in the Spanish capital on the morning of March 11 of this year left 191 people dead and almost 2,000 injured.

So far, 30 suspects, most of them North Africans, have been formally accused of involvement in the bombings.

(Xinhua News Agency December 2, 2004)