Interrogation

From The Guardian.

The government is secretly trying to stifle attempts by MPs to find out what it knows about CIA "torture flights" and privately admits that people captured by British forces could have been sent illegally to interrogation centres. A hidden strategy aimed at suppressing a debate about rendition - the US practice of transporting detainees to secret centres where they are at risk of being tortured - is revealed in a briefing paper sent by the Foreign Office to No 10.

The document shows that the government has been aware of secret interrogation centres, despite ministers' denials. It admits that the government has no idea whether individuals seized by British troops in Iraq or Afghanistan have been sent to the secret centres.

[...]

Andrew Tyrie, Conservative MP for Chichester and chairman of the parliamentary group on rendition, said last night: "All the experts who have looked at Rice's assurances have concluded that they are so carefully worded as to be virtually worthless. Relying on them, as the government appears to be doing, speaks volumes". He said his committee would pursue the issue.

Wow. Remember when Blair used to seem like a pretty good guy?

Also: Human Rights Watch has a new report out that, they say, shows -- duh -- that the U.S. is engaging in systematic torture. Scott McClellan said he rejected that description of the United States. Yes Scott, we'd all like to reject it too. But some of us are not as good at truthiness as you are, and are only able to reject it when we, oh, STOP TORTURING PEOPLE!

Here's a petition for you, from Amnesty International. Really, it'll only take a minute. Yeah, I hate petitions too. So useless, I think. What's a little name going to do? But do it anyway, for me. Instead of leaving a comment.