Italian Judge Issues European Arrest Warrants for CIA Officers In Continuing “Extraordinary Rendition” Investigation

Following a flurry of indictments in a Milanese court the previous few months, coupled with a formal extradition request for since-retired Robert Seldon Lady (former CIA station chief in Milan),^[1] an Italian judge has issued European arrest warrants for all 22 CIA officers^[2] previously charged with the abduction of an Egyptian imam pursuant to the so-called “Extraordinary Rendition” program.^[3] The European Arrest Warrant (EAW), the product of EU sponsored criminal intelligence and law enforcement integration, is an effort to expedite extradition between EU member states, by recognizing judicial decisions universally within the Union.^[4] Under the EAW instrument, political involvement –that is, the Executive determinations as to whether one should be extradited typically recognized in extradition proceedings –are categorically abolished. As a result, the process is purely one within the judicial province. Judicial independence is particularly pivotal in the present CIA cases in light of considerable pressure placed on the Italian government to seek support in efforts to execute the Global War on Terrorism. Most recently, when asked about the ongoing CIA investigations, Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi apparently snapped, “you cannot tackle terrorism with a lawbook in your hand.”^[5] Because the EAW is binding on all states, by issuing an EU-wide arrest warrant none of the 22 CIA officers can travel within any of the 25 member states without fear of arrest.

The February 2003 abduction of the Egyptian imam, Hassan Osama Nasr, is allegedly indicative of a larger American intelligence modus operandi. Revelations over the CIA’s “Extraordinary Rendition” program have sent shockwaves throughout the international legal community. According to reports, the program which actually began in the Clinton Administration, involves the forcible abduction and rendering of a suspect either to that suspect’s country of origin, or to another third-party country known for its tough interrogation methods. Mapping these countries is like identifying a motley gaggle of known torturers and blatant human rights abusers (e.g. Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Uzbekistan). Such renditions have allegedly been conducted in hundreds of cases, sparking investigations in not only Italy, but Germany, Sweden, Norway, Spain, and the Council of Europe, inquiries in Great Britain, and civil suits in both Canada and the United States, tarnishing the American civil, political, and human rights record worldwide.

Because such activities tend to occur with the express complicity, or acquiescence, of the host state, one of the only mechanisms by which it may be tailored is through the criminal prosecution of those American officers and agents involved in the operations.

[1] Italian investigation into the CIA program and the extradition of Mr. Lady previously discussed here, here, here, and here.
[2] Note, an “officer” is distinguished from an “agent” in intelligence parlance. Where one is formally employed by the Central Intelligence Agency, he is an officer. Those contracted, or otherwise working on behalf of the Agency are dubbed agents. It is believed that all 22 of those indicted in Milan are officers, not merely agents.
[3] Aidan Lewis, Judge Issues Warrants for CIA Operatives, The Guardian, Friday, December 23, 2005. Available online here.
[4] The EAW was ruled by the German Constitutional Court as being incompatible with German law, which proved instrumental in preventing the extradition of a suspected al-Qa’eda member (Mamoun Darkazanli) from Germany to Spain in the summer of 2005. See: BBC News, ‘Al-Qaeda Man’ Wins German Appeal, found online here. As Germany works to reformulate its laws to make them compatible with the EAW, it appears increasingly less likely that this exception will again arise.
[5] Richard Owen, Berlusconi Defends Player’s Fascist Salute, The Times of London, Thursday, December 22, 2005. Available online here.