The 'CIA Torture' in Poland

Prosecutors to investigate 'CIA torture' in Poland

24th September 2010 - Poland has launched an investigation to establish whether a Saudi man accused of terrorism was tortured at a “secret CIA prison” reportedly located in Poland.

The man in question, Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, is suspected of planning the 2000 USS Cole bombing.

Earlier this week, Mr al-Nashiri's attorney in Poland, Mikolaj Pietrzak, requested that Polish prosecutors investigate his client's detention and treatment by the CIA.

Prosecutor Jerzy Mierzewski informed the Associated Press that al-Nashiri's treatment would indeed be probed, but under the aegis of a broader investigation into Poland's role in America's now-defunct global network of secret detention camps.

Mr al-Nashiri claims “he was tortured in an incredibly cruel manner,” Mr Pietrzak told Agence France-Presse. “We are seeking the identification and punishment of the perpetrators,” he added.

The prosecution is likely to focus in particular on whether torture was actually used against Mr al-Nashiri during his alleged detention in northeastern Poland. {read rest}