Study says 54 countries helped CIA renditions

US: Fifty-four foreign governments assisted the CIA in a global campaign that included harsh interrogations of suspects, a rights advocacy group said Tuesday, as it pressed for greater accountability.

The report by Open Society Foundations marks the most comprehensive list of countries that helped the United States in what critics saw as excesses by then president George W. Bush's administration after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Bush authorized "extraordinary rendition" -- the transferring of individuals without legal process -- to allow US and foreign intelligence agencies to interrogate alleged extremists outside the protections ensured on US soil.

The Open Society Foundations found evidence that 54 foreign governments supported the system by actions such as hosting CIA prisons, interrogating suspects, allowing airspace for secret flights or providing intelligence. Many of the cases involve countries that have long fought Islamic militants on their home territory such as Afghanistan, Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

The report also listed close US allies such as Australia, Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and Thailand.

South Africa was listed in part due to allegations the Pretoria government gave US intelligence the green light in 2003 to abduct Saud Memon, a Pakistani suspected in the slaying of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.

Memon died shortly after his release in Pakistan in 2007.

The study also listed Iran, saying that despite poor relations with the United States, Tehran indirectly handed over at least 10 suspects -- mostly Arabs -- to US custody via the Kabul government.

The report called for accountability both in the United States and overseas, saying there was "no doubt" that Bush administration officials authorized what it called human rights violations and thereby hurt US moral standing.

But it said that other nations also bore responsibility. Only Canada has apologized for its role, while three other countries -- Australia, Britain and Sweden -- have also offered compensation to individuals.

The report was released two days before a Senate panel considers President Barack Obama's nomination of John Brennan to be CIA director. Brennan, an aide to Obama, is likely to face questions about interrogation policies.

AFP