The European Parliament has decided to create a temporary committee on alleged CIA flights and detention centres in Europe

See also : CIA activities in Europe: European Parliament adopts final report deploring passivity from some Member States

On 18th January 2006, the European Parliament has adopted a decision setting up a temporary committee on the presumed use of European countries by the CIA for the transportation and illegal detention of prisoners. The committee will be composed of 46 MEPs and will cooperate with the Council of Europe institutions and the United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights. The committee will investigate in order to find out whether the CIA or other US agents or intelligence services of other third countries have been transporting prisoners or organised detention centres for alleged terrorists on the territory of the European Union or of acceding and candidate countries. The committee will also collect information to discover if EU citizens have been involved in or subject to transportation or detention and if Member States officials or European institutions have been involved in the alleged CIA activities. The committee will have to submit to the plenary recommendations on the matter. After the first four months of activity, it will have to present an interim report, describing in detail how it will continue working.

In addition to the decision on the committee, MEPs adopted an amendment to a resolution on Afghanistan, where they call for the immediate closure of the detention centre in Guantanamo, «where torture and other ill-treatment by US personnel has been a commonplace occurrence, according to numerous testimonies». The amendment, proposed by the Green Group, also «deplores the fact that new evidence leaked from Swiss intelligence confirms the use by the US of European bases for the clandestine transfer of prisoners from and to Afghanistan».

Documents:

Decision setting up a temporary committee on the presumed use of European countries by the CIA for the transportation and illegal detention of prisoners

http://www.europarl.eu.int

Amendment to Afghanistan resolution

http://www.europarl.eu.int

See also : CIA activities in Europe: European Parliament adopts final report deploring passivity from some Member States