EU says US secret prisons against international law
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
Brussels, Sept 16, IRNA
EU-US-CIA prisons
EU foreign ministers discussed the issue of secret CIA prisons during their meeting in Brussels Friday following a proposal by Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot.
"The existence of secret detention facilities where detained persons are kept in a legal vacuum is not in conformity with international humanitarian law and international criminal law," said the ministers in a statement.
They also acknowledged the intention of the United States Administration to treat all detainees in accordance with the provisions of the Geneva Convention and the assurances on ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross) access.
US President George W Bush admitted last week the existence of secret CIA prisons abroad, but did not say where.
Bot, however, told reporters that he would have preferred to see "a declaration but this was not acceptable to all 25 member states." He added that he believed "the message came across" in Washington that the EU "does not agree with the philosophy that the camps are still to be used in the future."
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