MILAN (AP) — The European court of human rights in Strasbourg has ruled that Italy violated the rights of the late Mafia "boss of bosses" Bernardo Provenzano by maintaining strict anti-Mafia prison conditions in his last few months alive.

The court ruled Thursday that Italy was not justified in extending the strict prison conditions just months before Provenzano's death due to his "critical cognitive decline."

Provenzano, who reputedly led the Mafia's powerful Corleone clan, died in June 2016 at 83 after a decade in jail, the last three years bedridden by illness. Provenzano's lawyers argued unsuccessfully to have his conditions eased due to their client's frail health.

The decision Thursday brought an immediate rebuke from Italian Deputy Premier Luigi Di Maio, who said "the inhumane behaviors were those of Provenzano."