U.K.: Rendition Flights Landed On Our Soil

Foreign Secretary Says Planes Carrying CIA Prisoners Were Refueled At Base In U.K. Territory

(CBS/AP)  Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband admitted Thursday that two American "extraordinary rendition" flights carrying terror suspects stopped at the British territory of Diego Garcia.

The government had previously insisted it had no evidence to support allegations that Britain had been involved in rendition, the U.S. program of secretly transporting terror suspects.

Miliband apologized to members of Parliament, saying U.S. officials have only just confirmed to him last week that such flights have twice landed on British soil, contradicting previous U.S. government assurances.

The planes refueled at a military base operated jointly by the U.S. and U.K. located on the British Indian Ocean territory. One flight was headed to the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay, the other to Morocco.

Miliband says neither of the two men being transported was a British resident or citizen. One is still being detained at Guantanamo, and the other has been released.

Under its agreement with the U.K. granting the U.S. rights to use the island, the U.S. government is supposed to ask permission for such flights, but assurances were given to Britain that no such flights had taken place, which led to earlier misleading statements made by former Prime Minister Tony Blair and former foreign secretary Jack Straw.

Miliband said the Americans had assured him that no U.S. detainees had been held on Diego Garcia or at any other U.K. territory.

Nevertheless, Miliband told Parliament, "I have asked my officials to compile a list of all the flights where we have been alerted to concerns regarding rendition through the U.K. or our overseas territories. Once this is ready we will be sending this list to the U.S. and seeking their specific assurance that none of these flights were used for rendition purposes."

He also underscored that Britain expects in the future that the U.S. will seek prior permission when transporting detainees through U.K. territory and airspace, and that permission would only be granted "if we are satisfied that the rendition would accord with U.K. law and our international obligations, and how we understand our obligations under the U.N. Convention Against Torture."

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he "shared the disappointment that everybody has" about the stops. Brown, speaking in Brussels, Belgium, said he had just been informed.

"The important thing now is we put in place the best possible procedures to ensure that this will not happen again," he said.

Miliband said U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice shared his concern: "We both agree that the mistakes made in these two cases are not acceptable and she shares my deep regret that this information has only just come to light," he said.

Conservative Party member and shadow foreign secretary William Hague said the revelation will give rise to "widespread concern" given past assurances that no such renditions had taken place.

In December 2005, Rice said that the U.S. respects the sovereignty of other nations, and "does not use the airspace or the airports of any country for the purpose of transporting a detainee to a country where he or she will be tortured."

[gkc99]

"Miliband said U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice shared his concern: "We both agree that the mistakes made in these two cases are not acceptable and she shares my deep regret that this information has only just come to light," he said. "


Yes, kidnapped prisoners being transported for torture should only go through dictatorships who share the Darth Bushit''s regime love of torture!

[quetzal0666]

Oh this is Really a Surprise,,,,,
First, there were no secret prisons, or secret planes,
or secret renditions, and all of this is no secret, that all of these so called secrets are war crimes...

[liberalme]

Is someone saying we''re lying???? How dare they!!

And Ole Condi says "mistakes have been made"--no kidding!!

Bush slipping into the white house, not once but twice would be a big one!

But, Bush will do what ever Bush wants to do, knowing full well, no one will stop him--not our elected officials, not other countries--everyone just lets Bush do what he wants.

[ajayvee]

And Blair and Brown and Straw knew nothing about it? Ya, right, pull the other one. At least it''s good to know that the World Court has jurisdiction over British politicians who are no longer heads of state unlike their American counterparts.

[davek455]

Condoleeza-lies-a-lot strikes again. What has she accomplished in power other than buy a lot of expensive shoes and play the piano?

[prinzowhales]

Yeah, let''s talk about the rendition flights...but not the CIA rendition and drug planes that went down in Mexico with tons of cocaine on board.

Let''s talk about those renditions--not the million dead iraqis and 4 million refugees. And...

Let''s ignore the fraudulent basis of this war which came after the false-flag 9-11 attack....and, incidentally, the latest word from the FBI is that the calls from the Solicitor General''s wife on 9-11 did not take place...according to David Ray Griffin, she tried to call but did not succeed in making a connection...wasn''t it interesting that with his wife, Barbara Olsen, just having died horribly...he''s not grieving...he out telling lies about his wife''s final moments...and what elaborate lies they were...

[samael2014]

How completely criminally insane does this incredibly mental psychopath need to be in order to claim to "agree that the mistakes made in these two cases are not acceptable and she shares my deep regret that this information has only just come to light". What she''s showing moral or legal concern that Britian soil was dirtied by the U.S. administrations hanious war crimes against humanity, and that once AGAIN this information has come to light.... er I mean has "only just come to light"? She must be one deeply ****** up amoral anti-Christian right-wing piece of un-American continuosly lying sack of deluded ***.

[antoniof123]

Miliband said the Americans had assured him that no U.S. detainees had been held on Diego Garcia or at any other U.K. territory.

Well, neo cons how many more friends will hate us. Keep it up this country is quickly becoming the most hated country on Earth.

You neo cons need to think about this the Soviet Union did the same as we are doing and they fell. I wonder what will happen to the power elite here?

[x32792]

Pelosi guarantees Zero Accountability for members of our professional political class in both Parties with her pledge, "There will be no impeachment!" Me so proud.

[neoconrcrazy]

Hey Brits! Didn''t you get the list of 935 lies they told us? Don''t feel so bad, being lied to is a thing we''ve gotton used to.

[forthepeopl1]

"Our government had told the British that there had been no rendition flights involving their soil or airspace since 9/11. That information, supplied in good faith, turned out to be wrong," said Hayden.

"That we found this mistake ourselves, and that we brought it to the attention of the British Government, in no way changes or excuses the reality that we were in the wrong," he added.

Hayden said neither of the individuals on board the two U.S. flights was part of the CIA''s "high-value terrorist interrogation program."

RIGHT HOW MANY MORE LIES WILL AMERICANS KEEP LETTING THESE A-HOLES IN WASHINGTON..TIME FOR AMERICANS TO WAKE UP, AND IMPEACH THEM ALL...

[samael2014]

You also have to wonder what it takes mentally to listen to your government counter-part in an allied nation essentially tell you that your barbaric violations of international law are so heinious to their culture, that we can''t allow you to violate our territory with your bloody sacrilegious instruments of disgust, you criminally sick ***, and certainly not without telling us in a way that we can inform our Christian god-loving people of their unknowing culpability in an act against God; and respond by apologizing that mistakes were made on both sides, as if what you have just said could possibly be taken seriously.

[forthepeopl1]

TIME FOR A REVOLUTION PEOPLE

[skyk-2009]

It sure is rough being an American right now! I once held my head high and proudly proclaimed I was an AMERICAN, not anymore. This is just about as disgusting as it get people when you LIE to your OWN People AND your ONLY ally. When you have to lie to cover something up you are most certainly WRONG. My Mother told me that! SIEG HEIL BUSH!!

[cbsblogger]

x32772; Re: You post about impeachment being off the table.

Pelosi was pressured by AIPAC for no impeachment. Why? Because it will lead to issues that will embarass Israel.

[lovegetpeace]

Bush has said repeatively he is not listening to our phone conversations via FISA. Maybe that''s another lie also.

[mcvet]

I wonder how many new Terrorist THIS will create? It''s not like there isn''t world wide hatred enough for the fascist government of this county. This will most certainly knock those sitting on the fense off... on the WRONG side. I''ve come to the conclusion that the entire Republican Party has NO idea how to fight and win against a Religious Extremist Group. Just think if we''d made these kinds of mistakes against the Klan and the Religious Extremist in the 60''s. We''d NEVER have gotten the support of the White Middle Class and thus would never have won that fight. Shame some people never learn. Sieg Heil Bush!

[forthepeopl1]

hey u.k, hows does it feel to be lied to. we have been liveing these lies from bush,rice,rove,cheney for years..come on u.k people time to tell this rice pig to f-off and die.............

tell the same to bush...cheney...

time to have a up rise against them all..

[forthepeopl1]

hey bush,rice,cheney, i have a state secret for you.

ready the real americans in this country are getting fed up with no one doing anything to stop you all..

well we are. oops

[forthepeopl1]

taken any of you out, would be the greatest hero in america.. and the world..you all are no better than hitler himself, or bin laden,

[inventagod]

Isn''t torture fun?

Seems it''s the only thing that gets DlCK CHENEY off these days...

[inventagod]

Oh no!

Make that 936 LIES....

[mcvet]

Once we had a president named George Washington who could not tell a lie. Now we have a jerk called George Bushit that can not tell the truth. We need to have a hanging on the white house lawn, for the world to see.


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Posted by zolefart at 12:29 PM : Feb 21, 2008
+ report abuse

Now THAT is an Idea I can live with!!

[rowdytexan2]

OUCHHh! I think Britain just slapped Condi and her Bushit boss right in the face!

I hope this fall we have the guts to do the same thing! It''s time to say NO MORE OF YOUR LYING AND CORRUPTION!

[ajaxtheleast]

OUR LATEST RENDITION (of an idiot) LANDS IN
LIBERIA !

Just when you thought that in his search for an
Iraq-negating-legacy he couldn''t look worse than
holding a sword over his shoulder whispering
sweet nothings to a seven foot Arab, here he is
sitting with the queen of Liberia, eyes closed,
Shidt-eating grin and obviously enjoying a
moist dream.

''08 PRESS PHOTOGRAPHERS'' REVOLT ?

[rowdytexan2]

Yowser, and now the Serbs have ransacked the American Embassy in protest!

I''d say it''s kind of a red letter day for US foreign relations, gads!

[bradosol]

As a Briton I''m truly ashamed of my government for acquiescing in rendition flights.

I don''t object to any government having secrets - they''re sometimes necessary - but this "suddenly-discovered" secret stinks.

The whole point of such flights is to have people interrogated more "firmly" than is legal in the U.S.

I''m disgusted by the euphemisms for torture that are being used and appalled that my country''s government is involved in any way.

The Gestapo in Paris were very fond of a form of "waterboarding", though I don''t know what they called it. In their case they used manacles and a bath of water to take someone to the point of drowning. Read the experiences of the now-deceased agent Yeo-Thomas in the book "Bravest of the Brave" by Mark Seaman.

In answer to those who try to justify rendition flights and what they take people into - it''s wrong and you''re wrong!

[watcher269-2009]

Why is anyone surprised by this? It was Britain and the United States that make a FALSE case against Saddam Hussein.

Both the U.S. and the U.K. did not want Saddam to convert to the Euro (that the U.K. does not use) from the Dollar ( that is 1/2 of the british pound ) for Oil.

Go figure

[ajaxtheleast]

We knock this guy down,..grab him,..toss him

to the ground,..drag him kicking and screaming

to our SUV,..throw his sorry as_s in the back,

tie him up,..gag him,..drive him to a

god-for-saken airport,..and fly him ten-

thousand miles away. . . . What would you

call that ? . ."Rendition?". . My thoughts

exactly. . .We''ll go with "rendition."


..tie

[rowdytexan2]

Posted by watcher269 at 02:19 PM : Feb 21, 2008

Good point!

[sevenveils]

How about a rendition of a couple of cowboys in the whitehouse?

[ocfotoman]

OH way to go Bush! Now all you have to do is to F up our relationship with our good ally Britain! Next January isn''t soon enough for me.

[taddles-2009]

"In December 2005, Rice said that the U.S. respects the sovereignty of other nations, and "does not use the airspace or the airports of any country for the purpose of transporting a detainee to a country where he or she will be tortured."

Which, the Brits have just pointed out, was a lie.

Diego Garcia is a rock in the middle of the Indian ocean leased ad-infinitum by the US military. It is owned by the Brits so it is not technically "US soil" so anyone brought there is not technically being detained on "US soil". Therefore they can get away with things like illegal renditions (read torture) that you can''t do on "US soil". This is how the nuances and semantics game is used by the Bush cabal to circumvent the law. This is also the same reasoning behind Guantanamo Bay, detain prisoners on non-US soil and you can do whatever you want to them. No pesky laws or treaties to get in the way of a little mock electrocution.

[runningralph]

All you folks who are so ashamed to be American should go where you can be proud.

[andor3]

"All you folks who are so ashamed to be American should go where you can be proud."

A little off--we are ashamed at what America has done and is doing, what the nation has come to stand for how we are viewed around the world.

We are not going anywhere--it is our country and we are in the process of taking it back, undoing the damage, and restoring the reputation. Part of that is identifying and punishing the people who have led or allowed this destruction of America to happen--are you one?

[andor3]

YEs rendition is part of torture and it is wrong.

The UK is embarrassed and ashamed that they played even a small role in it, and are coming clean.

Big question is why isn''t the US government similarly ashamed, repentant and coming forward with confession of their crimes? (and they are crimes, no question)

[bm6005]

"All you folks who are so ashamed to be American should go where you can be proud."

Sounds like a Hitler apologist circa 1933.

[walt1944-2009]

The Great Emperor Bush II maintains that the USSA does NOT torture its prisoners.

We just let other countries do it for us!!!!!!!!!

SIG HEIL, BUSH!!!!!
sig heil, McCain????????

[mcvet]

Get real. The whole hippie idealism is so lame, who runs the Country? Do you actually think your vote counts? Do you think someone who is elected in 4 year terms is given the responsibility of running our Nation?

Dont be dumb.


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Posted by darkmeat4 at 04:01 PM : Feb 21, 2008
+ report abuse

YOUR A FASCIST PLAIN AND SIMPLE!! You made NO effort to even DISCUSS this very embarrassing even. You made no effort to discuss the harm it will or could do to this nation. The NATION wasn''t even in your thoughts! It was all about attacking anyone who dared to go against the "Party" or the Fuhrer. You Sir are a FASCIST plain and simple. SIEG HEIL!!

[mcvet]

All you folks who are so ashamed to be American should go where you can be proud.


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Posted by runningralph at 03:20 PM : Feb 21, 2008
+ report abuse

That''s the most rediculous statement I''ve ever heard! So the nation has been embarrassed and humiliated. Your solution? Run those out who see the shame and humilation and want to do something about it? That''s INSANE!! We SHOULD be ashamed and we SHOULD do something about the horrible conduct of those who were SUPPOSED to represent WE THE PEOPLE. They did NOT do that because the AMERICAN PEOPLE do NOT do things like this! Sieg Heil Bush!!

[runningralph]

andor3,
Maybe I am one. I know the US has to fight Islamic jihad, and I believed in the war against communism -when it was cold or hot. I was even involved in that one, no heroic deeds, but I did my part as ordered. If the US had not stood up against ommunist aggression, the world would be communist today. If we don''t stand up against jihad, Western civilization is doomed. The irony is that if western civilization falls the formerly communist nations will be the true survivors.

[mcvet]

I''''ve been there a bunch of times, about the only thing that gets tortured is the airmen and sailors that have to be there.

There are a ton of civilians there and military folk. No bad-guys though.

The reason libtards talk about DG is that the press isnt there so they imagine it as a big secret base. Same types who think aliens are at Area-51...LOL.

There are several bars, a few resteraunts, golf-course, and a ton of wild chickens. No prisoners.


Posted by darkmeat4 at 03:38 PM : Feb 21, 2008
+ report abuse

Typical Nazi! Try as hard as you can to make yourself appear Superior and to make those who oppose the Party and the fuhrer out to be inferior. OF course you NEVER address the issue...can''t do that can you swastika breath! God what rock did you freaks slime from under? Here we have this nation humiliated and embarressed on the FLOOR of the British Seat of Government and YOU must attack someone for being a "Lib". You people have NO morals and are without any sense of honor what so ever. Sieg Heil and Good Bye.

[mcvet]

Maybe I am one. I know the US has to fight Islamic jihad, and I believed in the war against communism -when it was cold or hot. I was even involved in that one, no heroic deeds, but I did my part as ordered. If the US had not stood up against ommunist aggression, the world would be communist today. If we don''''t stand up against jihad, Western civilization is doomed. The irony is that if western civilization falls the formerly communist nations will be the true survivors.


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Posted by runningralph at 04:29 PM : Feb 21, 2008
+ report abuse

Man you are so full of it your eyes are BROWN! Every time you bootlickers get trapped you fall back on McCarthyism!! We BROKE the LAW and we LIED to our ONLY ally! Lets try to get a grip on your cowardly fear here long enough to try and understand how MANY new Terrorist we will create with acts like this. YOU do know this will create even MORE hatred for us don''t you Swastika Breath. That God we had progressives running things in the two World War''s... had you cowards been doing it we''d have lost and lost big time. Sieg Heil Bush

[rowdytexan2]

Well, regardless of your thinking, Runningralph, the Brits seem kinda pixxed that we used their land to bring prisoners through. Probably what they''re MORE pixxed about is that they were LIED to! The issue doesn''t really matter that much, but the LIES matter!

When you have NO HONOR, like the Neocons don''t, no one in the freaking world is going to trust you! Why do you suppose that those of us in our own country are rather applied at the brazen LIES the Neocon regime has presented to us?

I guess you blind sheep don''t mind who lies to you, as long as you feel all warm and fuzzy!

[rowdytexan2]

...appauled...sorry, bad edit.

runningralph wrote:

"andor3,
Maybe I am one. I know the US has to fight Islamic jihad, and I believed in the war against communism -when it was cold or hot. I was even involved in that one, no heroic deeds, but I did my part as ordered. If the US had not stood up against ommunist aggression, the world would be communist today. If we don''''t stand up against jihad, Western civilization is doomed. The irony is that if western civilization falls the formerly communist nations will be the true survivors."

I strongly disagree.

During the Vietnam war, we told other countries that if Vietnam fell, the rest of Asia would follow.

That did not happen, despite the fact that the Vietnamese won the Vietnam war.

Communism, just like pure Capitalism, is a deeply flawed ideology.

Fact is, Governments need enemies - it helps to control the people, and as we have seen, it can help win "un-winnable" elections.

MCVet wrote:

"Man you are so full of it your eyes are BROWN! Every time you bootlickers get trapped you fall back on McCarthyism!! We BROKE the LAW and we LIED to our ONLY ally! Lets try to get a grip on your cowardly fear here long enough to try and understand how MANY new Terrorist we will create with acts like this. YOU do know this will create even MORE hatred for us don''''t you Swastika Breath. That God we had progressives running things in the two World War''''s... had you cowards been doing it we''''d have lost and lost big time. Sieg Heil Bush"

I would love to see the files kept on those who have been rendered - then perhaps we would find out how many of these "terrorists" have had to be set free because of their innocence.

This Bush Administration have tortured and murdered far too many innocent people.

Personally, I hope that some "foreign" country renders GW Bush and sends him to Syria where he is tortured slowly - very slowly - until he is no more.

[mrassekh]

WHAT???? Bush led people to believe something that wasn''t true? But, but that would mean maybe he''s led other people to believe untruths, too. I''m shocked. Shocked! 11 more months - I keep telling myself, only 11 more months.

[lovegetpeace]

Hay mrassekh,
You don''t need to suffer 11 more months, impeach now as we have the evidences beyond a reasonable doubt.

[lovegetpeace]

Hay runningralph,
On the subject of communism and domocratism.

In communism, the dictator is responsible for the welfare of the people.

In domocracy, the people are responsible for their own welfare.

Given our situation today, the people are doing a terrible job.

Therefore, domocracy is just as bad as communism.

Also, Capitalism works best under communism where workers have almost no rights. Capitalism does not like it when workers have rights such as in democratic countries.