We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
THE DEPARTMENT OF Foreign Affairs has denied that Shannon Airport was used by the CIA for the purposes of transporting prisoners who were tortured.
Yesterday a report was released detailing how brutal the CIA’s interrogation of terror suspects was in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.
The document does not identify specific countries where interrogation or detention took place, nor countries through which prisoners were transferred.
However, last year a report compiled by the Open Society Foundation found 54 governments – including Ireland – facilitated the CIA’s rendition program.
A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs told TheJournal.ie that Ireland “does not tolerate and will not tolerate the use of our airspace or airports for any illegal purpose, including torture, rendition or the unauthorised detention of any individual”.
“The Programme for Government states clearly that the Government ‘will enforce the prohibition of the use of Irish airspace, airports and related facilities for purposes not in line with the dictates of international law’.”
The spokesperson said “no information or evidence has previously been provided to substantiate any assertion that Ireland has permitted such activity or that any person has ever been subjected to extraordinary rendition through Irish airspace and airports”.
The Government has on several occasions made clear to the US Authorities that it would be illegal to transit prisoners for rendition purposes through Irish territory without the express permission of the Irish Authorities, acting in accordance with Irish and international law.
The US Authorities, for their part, have confirmed that they have not done so and that they would not do so without seeking the permission of the Irish Authorities, which would not be forthcoming for any purpose which would not be consistent with the provisions of Irish and international law.
The spokesperson noted that complaints from members of the public that rendition flights were transiting through Shannon Airport have been the subject of investigation by An Garda Síochána, adding:
“No evidence of rendition was disclosed in any of the investigations.”
With reporting by Michelle Hennessy
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Rest in Peace..
With no disrespect to the deceased or his family, garda forensic team only need to see the video… Brush up and open the road….its obvious to a blind man what happened. RIP
Close the comments.
With no disrespect to the deceased, he could have killed someone else, absolutely shocking driving down the fast lane of a motorway in the wrong direction
It was obviously a mistake.
@Shane McGrath: was it? I’d find it hard to believe that he could make that same mistake for so long he seemed to be going down the motorway for a long time nevermind all the signs Saying do not enter when entering the On ramp if it was a 20 year old young lad who did the same there wouldn’t be this kind of sympathy.
@James: This happened to me before on the M9. Met an elderly man driving towards us while we were in the ‘over taking/ fast lane’ – thankfully we noticed it in time and there was nothing on our inside so that we managed to avoid the man. It was terrifying, rang the guards and alls they could say was ‘Yes we are aware of that’.
RIP to the poor man.
Comments should be closed.
That can quite easily happen anyone especially on that part of the road, the brutal signage and the maze of roundabouts on the slip roads is atrocious. There is very often roadworks that regularly has you driving in the other side too.
I nearly got caught out coming out McDonalds last year late at night when signs from roadworks that had finished were not removed.
@Da Dell: they drove by plenty of cars heading the other direction and should have pulled into the hard shoulder of it was a mistake, horrible anyway for everyone involved
Terrible for the mans family but it’s happening too often on that road.
Twice I’ve been driving to Dublin in the outside lane and you see a dot coming towards you …it takes seconds to realise its a car on the wrong side of the Motorway and you move in pretty quickly and hope anyone behind you see’s the car.It’s usually an elderly man on his own to be honest
The woman in the red car got out pretty quickly after the crash
For the frequency that this happens , as we do seem to see rarely byt enough to come up with something. and seeing all the cars trying to warn people on the opposite side of the road, we should come up with some universal warning like , if someone holds their horn down this means to tell the other side of the road to pull in.
@Roisin Brennan: the thing is, once you realise where do you go?
Wonder if this man’s doctor gave him okay recently to have licence. Obviously he had some form of dementia.
have your say