Posted on 05/30/2007 10:47:53 AM PDT by tcrlaf
Group Also Appeals to United States Supreme Court in Khaled El-Masri Lawsuit
EXTRAORDINARY RENDITION > Mohamed et al. v. Jeppesen Dataplan, Inc. > El-Masri v. Tenet
NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union today filed a federal lawsuit against Jeppesen Dataplan, Inc., a subsidiary of Boeing Company, on behalf of three victims of the United States government's unlawful "extraordinary rendition" program.
The lawsuit charges that Jeppesen knowingly provided direct flight services to the CIA that enabled the clandestine transportation of Binyam Mohamed, Abou Elkassim Britel and Ahmed Agiza to secret overseas locations where they were subjected to torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.
"American corporations should not be profiting from a CIA rendition program that is unlawful and contrary to core American values," said Anthony D. Romero, Executive Director of the ACLU. "Corporations that choose to participate in such activity can and should be held legally accountable."
The complaint, to be filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges that Jeppesen, through its travel service known as Jeppesen International Trip Planning, has been a main provider of flight and logistical support services for aircraft used by the CIA in the U.S. government's extraordinary rendition program.
The CIA rendition flights transfer terror suspects to countries where the U.S. government knows detainees are routinely tortured or otherwise abused in contravention of universally accepted legal standards.
The complaint also alleges that Jeppesen has facilitated flights to U.S.-run detention facilities overseas where the U.S. government maintains that the safeguards of its laws do not apply.
According to the lawsuit, since December 2001, Jeppesen has provided flight and logistical support to at least 15 aircraft that have made a total of 70 rendition flights.
As described in the complaint, Jeppesen's participation in the rendition flights has included furnishing aircraft crew with flight planning services including itinerary, route, weather, and fuel planning; responsibility for the preparation of pre-departure flight plans with air traffic control authorities; procurement of over-flight and landing permits from foreign governments; facilitation of customs clearance and arrangements for ground transportation, catering, and hotel accommodation for aircraft crew upon landing; and provision of physical security for aircraft and crew.
"Jeppesen's services have been crucial to the functioning of the government's extraordinary rendition program," said Steven Watt, a staff attorney for the ACLU's Human Rights Program. "Without the participation of companies like Jeppesen, the program could not have gotten off the ground."
Specifically, the complaint alleges that Jeppesen provided crucial support services to the CIA for the following flights involving the three plaintiffs in the lawsuit:
In July 2002, Ethiopian citizen Binyam Mohamed, while in CIA custody, was stripped, blindfolded, shackled, dressed in a tracksuit, strapped to the seat of a plane and flown to Morocco where he was secretly detained for 18 months and interrogated and tortured by Moroccan intelligence services.
In January 2004, Mohamed was once again blindfolded, stripped, and shackled by CIA agents and flown to the secret U.S. detention facility known as the "Dark Prison" in Kabul, Afghanistan where he was again tortured and eventually transferred to another facility and then to the U.S. Naval Station at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, where he still remains.
In May 2002, Italian citizen Abou Elkassim Britel was handcuffed, blindfolded, stripped, dressed in a diaper, chained, and flown by the CIA from Pakistan to Morocco where he was tortured by Moroccan intelligence agents and where he is now incarcerated.
In December 2001, Egyptian citizen Ahmed Agiza was chained, shackled, and drugged by the CIA and flown from Sweden to Egypt where he was severely abused and tortured and where he still remains imprisoned.
According to published reports, Jeppesen had actual knowledge of the consequences of its activities. A former Jeppesen employee informed The New Yorker magazine that, at an internal board meeting, a senior Jeppesen official stated, "We do all of the extraordinary rendition flights - you know, the torture flights. Let's face it, some of these flights end up that way." (Jane Mayer, The New Yorker, Oct. 30, 2006.)
The lawsuit was filed under the Alien Tort Statute, which permits aliens to bring claims in the United States for violations of the law of nations or a United States treaty. The statute recognizes international norms accepted among civilized nations that are violated by acts such as enforced disappearance, torture and other inhuman treatment described in the lawsuit.
In furtherance of efforts to hold Jeppesen accountable, the ACLU of Northern California and other advocacy groups will hold a rally at noon today (Pacific Time) outside Jeppesen's offices in San Jose to protest the company's participation in immoral and illegal renditions. For further information, please contact the ACLU of Northern California.
If I recall, doesn't Jepps have the contract for providing updated charts for ALL Governement flights, as REQUIRED by legislation after Ron Brown's Death?
Wasn't the excuse for that bad charts?
The same article on CNN: ACLU sues Boeing unit for CIA torture flights Suit, made on behalf of 3 alleged torture victims, claims Jeppesen Dataplan gave flight, logistical support for 'rendition' flights.
Another trip up box canyon for the ACLU.
Makes as much sense as suing Rand-McNally if one of their road atlases is found in the car of a bank robber.
It’s pure propogandic BS...
Teey get ANOTHER jab, and another headline, in the Anti-Bush propoganda campaign, and MAYBE they actually get someone to admit that rendittion actually exists, to save millions in legal fees fighting a bogus lawsuit.
My thought exactly; I thought it was satire until I went to the link.
That some judge would actually accept such a bogus lawsuit adds yet another footnote to the depth that our judiciary has sunk.
What really rankles is that my tax dollar subsidizes the ACLU...
Well, we've got to change that.
Any ideas?
"I Support Torture for Terrorists"
For a bumper sticker.
More torture for terrorists!
More torture, fewer terrorists!
Torture only terrorists!
Lets assume
1. A company knowingly does business with the CIA
2. The CIA does something that a private company could be sued for.
It does not follow that the CIA told the company what they were doing.
It also does not follow that civilian contractors do not have some shield.
It’s about time to fight back and sue the ACLU under RICO. I think taxpayer-citizens should have standing.
Reminds me of Southern Air Transport sitting on the Howard AB runway back in the late 80s - ah, those were the good old days, when the response to, “what’s that plane out there?” was, “What plane?”
Colonel, USAFR
Can we run the ACLU out of town yet? Make them walk the plank? Hang them at dawn? Honestly, with people like this inside our country, who needs enemies?
The government, through NOAA, publishes approaches, departures, VFR sectionals, enroute charts, etc, developed by the FAA. That’s my job, developing those procedures. Jeppeson takes the same information and distributes them to their customers. They also collect and distribute flight data for foreign countries.
So what’s next?
Sue GM for making the HUMMVEE’s that transported the terrorists to the camp?
Sue the plant that makes the MRE’s?
Where does the blatant assault on this country by a dedicated Socialist/Marxist outfit end?
Ah yes, the ACLU. An organization whose slogan should be:
“Because terrorists’ rights are more important than your life.”
....a senior Jeppesen official stated, “We do all of the extraordinary rendition flights - you know, the torture flights. Let’s face it, some of these flights end up that way.” (Jane Mayer, The New Yorker, Oct. 30, 2006.)
This statement is an assumption and nothing more. A “Senior Jeppesen Official” has the inside scope on military operations? This “official” is a fabrication.
Watching America eat itself is exactly what the Radicals want and they appreciate the contributions from Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Michael Moore, Rosie ODonnell, etc,.
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