Italian media reports and a Libyan official say police in Turin have arrested a Libyan warlord wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes.

Ossama Anjiem, who runs a major Libyan prison, was in Italy to watch a soccer match. He returned home after an Italian court found issues with the warrant for his arrest.

Italy's interior minister said on Thursday a Libyan man detained under an international war crimes arrest warrant and then unexpectedly released had been swiftly repatriated because of his "social dangerousness".