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Italian Court Convicts 23 CIA Agents |
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Monday, 01 March 2010 |
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An Italian court has convicted 23 Americans of abducting an Egyptian terror suspect under the CIA's so-called "extraordinary rendition" programme.
The man who was abducted was taken to Egypt, where he was allegedly tortured. Now, 23 Americans have been found guilty and given sentences of five to eight years to serve in prison.
The convicted men ranged from US diplomats to members of the military and included the former CIA station chief in Milan, Robert Seldon Lady, who received the longest sentence of eight years.
“This has been an ongoing case, so we will have to see if Interpol red notices go out and which countries will cooperate with authorities to take these people into custody,” Madsen explained.
Amnesty International has said that the US should not need a foreign court to distinguish what is right from what is wrong.
Many people are now wondering whether this case will set a precedent for the Obama administration to investigate and prosecute other members of the “extraordinary renditions” programme.
However, Madsen thinks that Obama’s actions will not be unexpected.
“If what we see so far from the Obama administration plays out, Obama will defend the CIA as he has done in the past,” he said.
“I think we will not see any cooperation between the Obama administration and the Department of Justice and the Italian authorities,” he added. The 23 individuals do face imminent arrest if they were to leave the US.
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