Posted on 01/31/2007 5:14:36 AM PST by MARKUSPRIME
Germany has ordered the arrest of 13 suspected CIA agents over the alleged kidnapping of one of its citizens.
Munich prosecutors confirmed that the warrants were linked to the case of Khaled al-Masri, a German national of Lebanese descent.
Mr Masri says he was seized in Macedonia, flown to a secret prison in Afghanistan and mistreated there.
He says he was released in Albania five months later when the Americans realised they had the wrong man.
Mr Masri says his case is an example of the US policy of "extraordinary rendition" - a practice whereby the US government flies foreign terror suspects to third countries without judicial process for interrogation or detention.
Code names
Prosecutors in Munich said in a statement that the city's court had issued the warrants on suspicion of abduction and grievous bodily harm. The information on which the warrants was based came from Mr Masri's lawyers and a journalist and officials in Spain, where the flight carrying Mr Masri is thought to have originated.
"These findings, as well as other information uncovered in the probe, led to the strong suspicion that these 13 identifiable people were involved in the abduction of Masri," it said.
The names and nationalities concerned were not released but prosecutors said the names identified were thought to be the code names of CIA agents.
"The investigation will now focus on learning the actual names of the suspects," they said.
German arrest warrants are not valid in the US but if the suspects were to travel to the European Union they could be arrested.
Italian case
Mr Masri says he was abducted by US agents in the Macedonian capital, Skopje, on 31 December 2003.
He is seeking to sue the US government over his detention, but in May a judge dismissed a lawsuit he filed against the CIA, citing national security considerations.
The US government is not assisting the German authorities with the case.
Meanwhile in the Italian city of Milan, court hearings to decide whether to indict 25 alleged CIA agents and several Italians accused of kidnapping a Muslim cleric in 2003 are under way.
Osama Mustafa Hassan, or Abu Omar, says he was abducted from the streets of Milan and then tortured in Egypt.
If the case proceeds to trial, it would be the first criminal prosecution over America's rendition policy.
The practice has drawn widespread criticism from human rights groups, legal experts and the international community.
But last week a European Parliament committee approved a report saying EU states knew about secret CIA flights over Europe, the abduction of terror suspects by US agents and the existence of clandestine detention camps.
Look in the mirror when you say that, troll.
Kind of a 'Deutchland uber alles' thing right?
Will do, thank you for your voice of reason. Though the arrest warrants are an overreaction to the case, it sets a political sign that the CIA should prepare their operations better. Mistaking an innocent for a terrorist because both have similar names is a "don´t", and even worse, finding out that they´re wrong after MONTHS! I guess that´s more I´ve to say, because I don´t have much sympathy with Mr. El-Khalid, either. This would not have happened if he was named Müller (Miller), Schmidt (Smith) or Meier.
"Yeah but you are'nt the US,and some of the 9/11 hijackers came from Hamburg, germany. There is the differance.Defend the muslims all you like,you wont ever arrest our intel officers."
I would have said the same thing once.... but in light of today's political climate in this country, I don't know anymore.
I was not the one taunting other posters with lame and anachronistic insults.
No, a protection against totalitarian governments. Would you want to end up in a cell with another 50 people in Marocco? Our overall jurisdiction made many bilateral treaties regarding the extradiction of our citizens to Germany possible, because we ensure that the committed crimes will be prosecuted. I´d say this is standard for most western countries!
It just sickens me when Americans who love national sovereignty and are against institutions like the World Court hypocritically support giving the U.S. supranational powers to traipse around other nations' rights.
And at the very least, if you're going to do that, do it RIGHT. Don't let the authorities catch you before you catch the terrorists. And make sure you get the terrorist, not some bystander.
And you viewed all the foreigners you met with the attitude "y´all live because we generous Americans allow it"??? Man, I´m glad that you´re not the first American I met. I surely would develop hard feelings against your nation, unjustly, because the attitude you´ve shown is not shared by the large majority, but nevertheless.
Not really. I was just pulling your chain a little with that one. (/joking)
All kidding aside I hope that this one gets resolved peacefully.
THAT´s the point here! I would not have said a word if the guy was guilty.
The names of the 13 agents will never be released so this won´t have any consequences at all, except the political damage/wake-up call for the CIA, so that such a mistake won´t be repeated. I´d say it´s their own fault.
Of course, I was not afflicted with your company.
I do not apologize for my country. There is nothing to apologize for. If America has done wrong it has been more than over-balanced by the good that America has done.
By the way. How is the Deutchmark doing nowadays?
"Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?"
I'll have to admit it...the Deutschers were smart. They knew the bomb was coming, so they surrendered before it could be dropped on them (not to mention the fact the Russians had closed in on Berlin).
By the way. How is the Deutchmark doing nowadays?
Is it meant to offend me? I really like the Euro, and I like its strength compared to the Dollar, because it makes travelling to the States a bit cheaper.
Actually, Berlin was fully occupied and surrendered on May 1st 1945, while the Nazi government agreed to the unconditional surrender on May 8 1945, when 80% of the Reich in its borders of 1937 was already occupied.
ref my post # 53...that was a reference to the movie "Animal House". I doubt it was a big hit in Germany when it came out in the late 70's.
Germany would be better off forgiving this as an honest mistake. The war against terrorism is a war, it isn't some pretty abstract theory where everything goes smoothly.
I am just tired of "The USA is SATAN" stuff.
I can get that at Salon.com
The bit about the Deutchmark was a bit catty, I apoligize for that.
I invite you to think very-very hard about a world without a USA.
Who would be in charge?
The Soviets? The Third Reich?
If you were very lucky it would be the British Empire.
Know this. I will always defend my country.
In a world without the U.S.A., the most probable outcome would have been him (Micheal) living in the third reich which controls all of Europe. And the Euro would just be the Mark and France would be where they deserve to be.
People who pontificate on WWII seem to lack an understanding about what really happened during the war. For example, the nazis kept ALIVE and returned 20,000 American and British airmen who were shot down during the war. They kept alive the very same people who were bombing their cities. Do you for one second believe the Japanese treated our captured airmen likewise?
Yes, the Germans did follow the conventions better than the Japanese, but not always. Malmedy.
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