Last week the UK finally admitted to the European Commission that it had played a role in helping the US transport prisoners to secret CIA detention facilities around the globe.
The admission on Thursday by the Westminster Government comes after years of campaigning by human rights organisations, including the Celtic League, for London to stop denying that such flights were taking place on UK territory and that they were being carried out with the full knowledge and support of the Government.
The UK is just one of a number of states in Europe who have been implicated in the rendition flight programme, with some states even being accused of providing CIA detention centres to hold prisoners. The flights passed through different airport locations within the UK, including Scotland, as part of the CIA extraordinary rendition programme.
In addition to the UK, rendition flights have also passed through Shannon airport in Éire and like the UK the Irish Government has also denied all knowledge of such flights passing through its airports. Not only are rendition flights illegal according to EU human rights laws, but they are also illegal under the Irish Constitution.
However, some state Governments are still providing less than adequate answers to the enquiries of the Council of Europe and the European Parliament, with both Poland and Romania being accused of deliberately dodging questions about their role in the CIA rendition programme.
The European Parliament has said it will evaluate how EU states have responded to the accusations of complicity with the CIA and what they have done to prevent the illegal activity from taking place on their territory
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Council of Europe report at:
J B Moffatt Director of Information Celtic League
27/02/08
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