Human rights groups are urging the Lithuanian government to
reopen a criminal investigation into secret prisons run by the CIA, which was
closed in mid-January due to a “lack of evidence.” On Jan. 26, a national
lawmaker said that the Lithuanian prosecutor general had failed to consider all
of the evidence, and human rights groups Amnesty International and Reprieve
have said that they have evidence that torture took place in the prisons.
Although their existence was not admitted by the U.S.
government until 2006, the CIA began illegally abducting and imprisoning
“terror suspects” in secret prisons in Eastern Europe in 2001. While detained,
prisoners had absolutely no rights and were subject to physical and
psychological torture.
Details of the torture techniques used in the prisons were
released in early 2009. Immediately, Pres. Obama promised that there would be
no prosecutions against those who committed torture.
Reprieve provided investigators a list of CIA officials,
Lithuanian handlers and eyewitnesses who can corroborate the allegations.
