The Spider’s Web
I made good progress on another ECHR related project this weekend on the topic of extraordinary rendition, which I briefly commented on last year. For the 2-3 other Lincolnites who have also been following this news story, you know that the big story broke in the Washington Post by journo Dana Priest way back in November of 2005 (for which she won a Pulitzer for). Since then, the Council of Europe has issued a comprehensive report based on witness testimony, information collected from Council member-states, air traffic records, and satellite imagery, concluding that the CIA operated a detention and transit system akin to a global “spider’s web” (depicted above) in likely violation of the European Convention on Human Rights. The ECHR’s Chahal and Soering cases will probably serve as authoritative precedent for any potential legal rulings that come out of this.
One of the poor bastards who got caught up in an example of “erroneous rendition” (wapo password required) was Khaled Masri – a German national who was vacationing in Macedonia, was arrested, and sent to Afghanistan where he was interrogated and allegedly tortured by CIA operatives for 5 months before being flown back to Europe and dumped on a hillside in Albania without explanation. His crime: Happening to share the name of a wanted 9/11 terror suspect. Oops.
In the wake of recent headlines regarding the plot to detonate explosives on board flights destined for the US, the allegations regarding the “spider’s web” will likely become more important. My advice to the CIA is that they learn to cooperate with European police and intelligence agencies to apprehended suspected terrorists – who have decades of experience in monitoring and capturing terrorists - rather than try and subvert European authorities on their own soil in contravention of international treaties. The former will get you a lot more progress than the latter.
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