Europe 'fails' US rendition victims

The failure of the European Union to hold to account member states accused of collusion with US rendition programs is risking turning the continent into an "accountability-free zone", Amnesty International has warned. Investigations have revealed several European countries were complicit in the CIA's controversial rendition and secret detention program in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. The countries, including EU member states Germany, Italy and Poland, are accused of cooperating with the US in a number of cases which Amnesty says led to the disappearance and torture of European citizens. In a report released on Monday, the group said the European Union has a legal responsibility to ensure that governments are held accountable for any involvement in illegal activities relating to the rendition program. "The EU has utterly failed to hold member states accountable for the abuses they've committed," said Nicolas Beger, Director of Amnesty International's European Institutions Office. "These abuses occurred on European soil. We simply can't allow Europe to join the US in becoming an 'accountability-free' zone. The tide is slowly turning with some countries starting investigations but much more needs to be done." International organizations, including the EU, have carried out a number of probes which have revealed that some European states cooperated with the US in their rendition programs. But it has been left to national governments to act on the disclosures, and some have not taken action despite the findings.