CIA watchdog looks into ‘erroneous renditions’

Agency is target of lawsuit
With the help of the American Civil Liberties Union, Khaled al-Masri, a German citizen of Lebanese descent, has sued the CIA for arbitrarily detaining him and other alleged violations after he was captured in Macedonia in December 2003 and taken to Afghanistan by a team of covert operatives in an apparent case of mistaken identity.

Speaking to reporters by video hookup from Germany this month, al-Masri said he was “dragged off the plane and thrown into the trunk of a car” and beaten by his captors in Afghanistan. Five months later, his complaint says, he was dropped off on a hill in Albania.

Mamdouh Habib, an Egyptian-born Australian, was arrested near the Pakistani-Afghan border shortly after 9/11 and flown to Cairo. He says for six months he was tortured there and was later transported to Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. In 2005, he was released without charge and allowed to return to Sydney.

Before 9/11, renditions were ordered to bring wanted criminals to justice. But the purpose was broadened after the attacks to get terrorists off the streets.

Renditions represent just a fraction of the captures handled by the CIA and its allies. More than 3,000 foreigners have been detained in operations involving the CIA and friendly intelligence services since 9/11, according to the intelligence official. Sometimes the United States may merely be providing information, training or equipment for the operations.

Middle Eastern countries involved
Countries including Jordan and Egypt are believed to cooperate with the operations. Although Saudi Arabia is thought to be involved, its ambassador to the United States has denied accepting any cases at the United States’ request.

The spotlight on the issue has called attention to how the CIA does its work, causing consternation among some agency officials who prefer to operate in the shadows.

For instance, planes operated by CIA front companies are often used to move the suspects from one country to another, bringing scrutiny to a secret agency fleet that’s traveled in the United States, Spain, Germany, Afghanistan, Poland, Romania and elsewhere.

Intelligence officials said the planes are more likely to be carrying staff, supplies or Director Porter Goss on his way to a foreign visit.

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