Firm to be sued over 'torture flights'

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A former British resident being held at Guantánamo is suing a subsidiary of the Boeing corporation which he alleges was involved in arranging for him to be taken to secret American prisons around the world. Once there, he says, he was tortured.

Lawyers for Benyam Mohammed, an Ethiopian national who grew up in Notting Hill, west London, say Jeppesen Dataplan has been providing logistical support for the Central Intelligence Agency's so-called extraordinary rendition programme.

According to legal papers filed in San Jose, California, by the London-based legal charity Reprieve, "Jeppesen has played a critical role in the successful implementation of the extraordinary rendition programme" by providing support for flights to countries where the use of torture is routine.

"Among other services provided, Jeppesen prepared pre-departure flight planning services, including itinerary, route weather, and fuel plans" for rendition flights, as well as landing and overflight permits, and arranged for fuel to be provided. The papers allege that Jeppesen facilitated more than 70 rendition flights over four years, and knew, or should have known, that detainees were being tortured at their destinations.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,,2094727,00.html