CIA prisons in Poland and Romania ?

Secret CIA-run prisons are holding terrorist suspects in Poland and Romania, claims Human Rights Watch.  

The Washington Post reported on 2 November that the CIA is running so called ‘black sites’, secret prisons where al Qaeda terrorist suspects are held in unknown conditions. It is illegal to run such prisons in the USA, which is why they were placed in other countries, writes the paper, citing former US intelligence officers.  

The Washington Post did not disclose the names of the third countries involved. However, leading human rights group Human Rights Watch on 2 November identified Poland and Romania as the likely locations in former Soviet-dominated eastern Europe of secret prisons where al Qaeda suspects are held by the CIA.

Human Rights Watch spokesman Tom Malinowsky said the practice of holding suspects in secret facilities had done ‘enormous damage’ to the standing of the United States, and had not produced any useful intelligence.

Stephen Hadley, President George W. Bush’s national security adviser, declined to comment directly, but said: “We do what is necessary to defend the country against terrorist attacks and win the war on terror in ways that is consistent with our values.” 

A spokesman for the Polish defence ministry said: “No people suspected of terrorist activities were held in military bases on the territory of the Republic of Poland, either as a result of an agreement with the US government or with any other institutions of the US.”

A spokeswoman for the Romanian president declined to comment.