NYT: Canadian Man Tortured in Syria Wants Explanation From U.S.

[tuvor]

OTTAWA, Sept. 19 — A software engineer who was exonerated of any involvement in terrorism by a Canadian government inquiry said Tuesday that he wanted the United States to explain why he was sent to Syria, where he was jailed and tortured.

And in addition to compensation and an apology from the Canadian authorities, whose inaccurate information contributed to his deportation to Syria, Maher Arar, 37, said he also wanted Prime Minister Stephen Harper to contact President Bush to demand that his name, as well as those of his family members, be formally cleared in the United States.

“It is my hope that the U.S. government provides the people with a valid explanation of what happened,” Mr. Arar said in an interview. “What does this do for the credibility of the U.S. government when it talks about protecting human rights?”

In its report, released Monday, the commission of inquiry said the Royal Canadian Mounted Police had supplied American authorities with false information, including the claim that the Syrian-born Mr. Arar and his wife were “suspected of being linked to the Al Qaeda movement.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/20/world/americas/20canada.html?_r=1&oref=login

Crossposted in LBN http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=2520584&mesg_id=2520584