As Condi goes on her European tour of spreading lies, we are finding out more
of wrong doings by our government in the treatment of suspects through their
“extraordinary rendition”. Today the

Mirror in London reported about one such case:

FATHER of four said yesterday he was held for nearly five months because
he had a similar name to a terror suspect.

Khaled el Masri, 41 – Lebanese born but a German national for 10 years –
was taken prisoner on holiday in Macedonia on December 31 2003.

He was held there 23 days and told to confess he was an al-Qaeda
terrorist.

He said: “I heard the door being closed and then they beat me from all
sides with hands and feet.

“With knives or scissors they took away my clothes in silence … They
stripped me naked. I was terrified.

“They tried to take off my pants. I tried to stop them so they beat me
again. When I was naked I heard a camera.”

He was dressed in a nappy, a short sleeved, short legged suit and belt.
His feet were shackled and his hands chained to the belt. His ears were
plugged, ear defenders put over them and a clip on his nose. A hood was put
over his blindfold.

With his arms held high behind his back he was driven to a plane, thrown
on the metal floor and given an injection.

On landing he was put in the boot of a car and held in a jail in Kabul,
Afghanistan, for four months. He discovered it was run by the US.

Article continues

here

Thankfully we have groups like the ACLU who isn’t afraid to challenge our
government. They are scheduled to file a lawsuit today against George Tenet and
three American contractors for the abuse and illegal treatment of el Masri. The
following is from

Raw Story:

The suit alleges that Tenet and other CIA officials violated U.S. and
human rights laws when they authorized agents to kidnap El-Masri, and that
his unlawful abduction and treatment were the direct result of an illegal
CIA policy known as “extraordinary rendition.”

The suit also charges that the three corporations that owned and operated
the airplane used to transport El-Masri to detention in Afghanistan are
legally responsible for assisting in the violation of his civil and human
rights. These corporations supplied the aircraft and provided the personnel
used in the illicit transportation of El-Masri, knowing that the transfer
was illegal, according to the ACLU.

View full article

here.

This action is a step in the right direction but only a small stride. I for
one am outraged that the leaders of our country feel they are above not only our
laws but the laws of other nations and can treat people however they want. This
type of action does nothing to make us safer. As matter of fact it is making us
less safe as more people around the world hear what is happening on our watch
and feel the same outrage I do. The entire administration is no better than al
Qaeda. They hurt innocent people and go into sovereign nations to conduct
illegal activities. We are past due for our own regime change.