Categories: Stories

Zimbabwe implicated in CIA torture report

Zimbabwe has been implicated as one of the 54 countries that were involved in assisting the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States in torturing individuals who were suspected of being involved with Al Qaeda following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in Washington and New York.

It is alleged to have detained Fahad al Bahli, Ibrahim Habaci, Khalifa Abdi Hassan, Mahmud Sardar Issa, and Arif Ulusam after they were arrested in June 2003 in Malawi, in a joint operation involving the CIA and Malawi’s National Intelligence Bureau.

The five are said to have been flown to Harare, where they were held for almost a month, and ultimately flown to Sudan where they were released, according to a report by the Open Society Foundation released yesterday.

The report says there were no known judicial cases or investigations in Zimbabwe relating to its participation in CIA secret detention and extraordinary rendition operations.

But it adds that while primary responsibility for the human rights violations associated with the CIA’s secret detention and extraordinary rendition operations no doubt lies with the United States, countries that participated or assisted in these operations also bear responsibility for these violations.

“International human rights law not only bars states from directly committing the violations associated with the extraordinary rendition and secret detention programmes, but also obligates them not to transfer individuals to states where they are at real risk of torture or to otherwise cooperate with or facilitate the commission of those violations,” the report says.

The report lists 136 individuals reportedly subjected to the CIA operations in 54 countries.

The 54 governments identified in the report are: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Finland, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Libya, Lithuania, Macedonia, Malawi, Malaysia, Mauritania, Morocco, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Syria, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan, Yemen, and Zimbabwe.

(78 VIEWS)

Charles Rukuni

The Insider is a political and business bulletin about Zimbabwe, edited by Charles Rukuni. Founded in 1990, it was a printed 12-page subscription only newsletter until 2003 when Zimbabwe's hyper-inflation made it impossible to continue printing.

Recent Posts

ZiG loses steam, falls against US dollar for five consecutive days

The Zimbabwe Gold fell against the United States dollar for five consecutive days from Monday…

November 22, 2024

Indian think tank says Starlink is a wolf in sheep’s clothing

An Indian think tank has described Starlink, a satellite internet service provider which recently entered…

November 18, 2024

ZiG firms against US dollar for 10 days running but people still do not have confidence in the currency

Zimbabwe’s new currency, the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG), firmed against the United States dollars for 10…

November 16, 2024

Zimbabwe among the top countries with the widest gap between the rich and poor

Zimbabwe is among the top 30 countries in the world with the widest gap between…

November 14, 2024

Can the ZiG sustain its rally against the US dollar?

Zimbabwe’s battered currency, the Zimbabwe Gold, which was under attack until the central bank devalued…

November 10, 2024

Will Mnangagwa go against the trend in the region?

Plans by the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front to push President Emmerson Mnangagwa to…

October 22, 2024