New Delhi, Mar 15 (IANS): India Friday sounded an alert at airports all across the country to prevent the Italian ambassador here from leaving the country.

The alert was sounded by the union home ministry a day after the Supreme Court restrained Italian ambassador Daniele Mancini from leaving India without permission, official sources told IANS.

"Airports all across the country have been alerted as a security measure to prevent the Italian ambassador from leaving," the sources said.

India's apex court took exception to the Italian government's refusal to send back two marines charged with killing two Indian fishermen.

The Supreme Court in February allowed marines Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone, accused of killing two poor Indian fishermen off Kerala, to fly to Italy to vote in the Feb 24-25 national election.

When the Italians were allowed by the Supreme Court to return to Italy for a second time (they went during Christmas and returned), Rome's ambassador here Daniele Mancini had promised that the two would positively return to India.