CIA team traveled Italy in style

Chicago Tribune ^ | December 25, 2005 | By John Crewdson, Tribune senior correspondent

[Jordi]

MILAN, Italy -- When the CIA decides to "render" a terrorism suspect living abroad for interrogation in Egypt or another friendly Middle East nation, it spares no expense.

Italian prosecutors wrote in court papers that the CIA spent "enormous amounts of money" during the six weeks it took the agency to figure out how to grab a 39-year-old Muslim preacher called Abu Omar off the streets of Milan, throw him into a van and drive him to the airport.

[MineralMan]

"This info was not leaked. It was discovered by the Italians because the CIA officers involved were incompetent."

Yup. On the other hand, it appears that the Italians were quite competent at tracking the activities of foreign nationals on their soil.

Sadly, we're not so good at that in this country, it seems. People come here on tourist visas and just disappear into the woodwork.

Check into a hotel in most European countries, and the clerk records your passport number. Very useful for the authorities.

Here, nobody records anything, except maybe the clock radio camera in your room, and that's not the cops.

[jimbo123]

When all is said and done Abu Omar is currently off the streets and being tortured in an Egyptian prison. Something that wouldn't be happening if we had decided to appease the Italians.

[Ditto]

I stayed in the Star Hotel in Milan and it cost about the same as any downtown business hotel in New York, Chicago, LA or Washington. Nice place mind you, not a "resort" but a good hotel where lots of business types stay. If your business requires you to be in the center city, $300 a night is not a lot in most cities, and damn cheep in many.

[Sawdring]

And when your salesman isn't welcome back in the country to do important business because he didn't do his job right, what do you do then? Selling $10.00 packets of Chicklets is different than running a CIA operation in a foreign country at taxpayer expense.

[LasVegasMac]

Don't sweat the cost. The gov't will print more.

You know what they say, "When in Rome........"

LVM

[rightinthemiddle]

Bond...James Bond.

[MeanWestTexan]

Complaints about how he did the job are different than complaints about running up an expense account, and not the subject of my comment.

[Thebaddog]

Crewdson is a liberal lackey. If he's doing the reporting, it's coming straight from the DNC as far as I'm concerned.

[Gordongekko909]

Length of stay: From 5 to 42 days

That's quite a margin of uncertainty.

[geezerwheezer]

Gosh, how much did the CIA (American Taxpayer)pay for the trip to Niger that Joe Wilson took? Wonder why that wasn't reported by the Chicago Tribune, or any other MSM paper or T.V. broadcast by ABC, CBS, or NBC ? Interesting question, but I ain't holdin' my breath waiting for an answer either!

[yellowdoghunter]

It is just sad that we have essentially reached the point in this country that we cannot have a covert intelligence operation anymore. The media and their friends in the agencies and in Congress will not allow it.

Very well said. And it should concern all of us that that is the case.

[Rakkasan1]

Mitch Rapp meets Armani

[Steelerfan]

Wasn't the initial italian investigation started because of a press leak about the "prison flights"? Or am a thinking of another case?

And unfortunately, even if this case isn't the result of a leak, we have too many that are.

[IRememberElian]

I don't know. Sounds likely.

[sgtbono2002]

Maybe the CIA thought erroneously that Italy was on our side.

Why did we have to go get this guy? Why didnt the Eye Tyes get him themselves.

I dont trust any European country with the exception of England .

[Sacajaweau]

Wonder how much we spent on Joe Wilson he went to Niger with the help of his wife Valerie? Not once....but twice. I have a feeling he drinks REAL EXPENSIVE tea.

[ozzymandus]

And this upsets the Italians why?
How many terrorists have the italians let go?

[AndyJackson]

Number of operatives tracked: 20 Length of stay: From 5 to 42 days Total room charges: $158,096.56

Say 20 operatives times 20 days on average = 400 room days, which works out to $395 per night. Anyone who has spent any time in European business hotels knows that this is a pretty average price to pay. Slightly high perhaps, but not really out of line.

US Government per diem rates for overseas travel are established by the US Department of State and can be found at http://www.state.gov/m/a/als/prdm/2005/57475.htm. Per diem rate in Rome is $467 per day and Milan is $442.

One suspects that a CIA operative tracking someone might have other expenses above what a normal person needing a romm and meals.

[Sonny M]

Is there anyway to verify is this is accurate, or just plain wrong?

I also noticed that they didn't give the name of a single CIA operative, all this info, and they don't know or aren't releasing names?

[ccmay]

It was discovered by the Italians because the CIA officers involved were incompetent.

Very poor tradecraft. I am all for rendition, and wish we would be more aggressive with our black-ops squads, but running up hundreds of thousands of dollars in bills at the best hotels in town chaps my ass. These folks were on a sex and booze junket, and only incidentally concentrating on the mission of snatching this dirtball off the street.

-ccm