"If no helpful action has been taken by early March -- as appears
increasingly likely -- then prosecutors will close their
investigation, the well-placed source said.
"The next step will be to go to trial," he said.
The European Parliament and the Council of Europe are watching the
Italian case carefully as they move ahead with their own
investigations into suspected U.S. anti-terrorism operations,
including running secret prisons in eastern Europe."


The risk the CIA operatives face is that, if convicted in absentia,
they would still be convicted criminals and thus fugitives from
justice subject to arrest and extradition if they travel to any
nation, probably including Canada and certainly Mexico, other than the
U.S.  Their days of traveling anywhere, or even taking a cruise, would
definitely be over as they could never be certain that cruise or
vacation they just "won" is not a honey trap set by the Italian
courts.  Even their status here might change, depending on who gets
elected or appointed to what. And, depending on what the other
european authorities do, the operatives might have lots of company in
that limbo.

David Bier

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2006-02-09T134356Z_01_L09730143_RTRUKOC_0_US-ITALY-CIA-KIDNAP.xml&archived=False

Italy may put CIA agents on trial in absentia
Thu Feb 9, 2006 8:43 AM ET

By Phil Stewart

MILAN (Reuters) - Milan prosecutors expect to launch procedures within
a month that could put 22 CIA agents accused of kidnapping a Muslim
cleric in Milan on trial in absentia, a senior judicial source said.

The source, who asked not to be named, said prosecutors were growing
tired of perceived foot-dragging by Washington and Rome over requests
that would advance their investigation -- one of several European
probes into suspected U.S. covert operations.

The United States has still not responded to a request in January by
Italy for judicial assistance in the case, which could potentially
allow Italian prosecutors to travel there to question suspects and
gather evidence.

Neither has Italy's government responded to a request in November from
prosecutors to seek the extradition of the agents from the United States.

If no helpful action has been taken by early March -- as appears
increasingly likely -- then prosecutors will close their
investigation, the well-placed source said.

"The next step will be to go to trial," he said.

The European Parliament and the Council of Europe are watching the
Italian case carefully as they move ahead with their own
investigations into suspected U.S. anti-terrorism operations,
including running secret prisons in eastern Europe.

German and Swiss prosecutors are also looking into other accusations
of U.S. covert transport of detainees, a process known as "rendition".

An Italian trial of the 22 agents could potentially open a wealth of
evidence in the case to the public, showing how terrorism suspect
Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr was grabbed off a Milan street in 2003 in
broad daylight.

Prosecutors will count on the de facto testimony of Nasr himself, who
briefly recounted the ordeal in conversations picked up in an Italian
phone-tap. He has said he was flown to Egypt and tortured during
interrogation.

Italian investigators have accused Nasr of ties to al Qaeda and a
Milan judge has issued a warrant for his arrest. He has been held by
Egyptian authorities, his lawyer has said.

Even if the 22 CIA agents are tried, investigations into the
kidnapping will continue. More CIA accomplices in the kidnapping will
be identified, the source said, thanks to evidence they left behind.

At the heart of the prosecutors' case are cell phone records.
Following the web of conversations, the investigators were able to
identify a network they say planned the kidnapping.

"Not all of the telephones used have yet been identified to specific
people, so the investigations continue," he said.

All of the 22 CIA agents are likely to have left Europe since Italy
issued arrest warrants against them last year which are valid across
the entire 25-nation European Union.





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