EU: The European Parliament has decided to create a temporary committee to investigate the suspected use of European countries by the Central Intelligence Agency for the illegal detention and transport of terror suspects.
During a debate in the parliament on the issue yesterday, EU justice and security commissioner Franco Frattini told MEPs there was no evidence confirming the allegations. In doing so, he appeared to contradict the findings of a Council of Europe committee which, in a report released this week, suggested the allegations were credible.
Fianna Fáil MEP Eoin Ryan told the parliament that EU citizens "have a right to know if European countries are being used to transport and detain prisoners".
Mr Ryan added he was tired of the argument that if "you question America, you are against it".
The leader of the Socialist group, Martin Schultz, said MEPs must not prejudge the US and that facts needed to be established. He told the parliament that MEPs must list the questions to which they wanted clear answers.
Sarah Ludford, leader of Britain's Liberal Democrats, said in the years following the Iraq war, America "has got deeper into the mire of illegality". Calling for the establishment of a temporary committee, Ms Ludford said a recent statement from US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice on the issue "begged more questions than it answered".
Fine Gael MEP Simon Coveney said a temporary committee "could deal with the allegations surrounding CIA flights and detention of terror suspects. If human rights have been infringed, we must find out not only who is responsible, but who else is involved."