Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Wednesday, Oct 22, 2025

Foreign Office refuses to help investigation into Britain's role in US torture and kidnappings

Foreign Office refuses to help investigation into Britain's role in US torture and kidnappings

THE Foreign Office has allegedly refused to help Scottish police with an investigation into British complicity in US torture and extraordinary rendition, drawing criticism from human rights groups today.
Police Scotland have been investigating the potentially unlawful use of airports in CIA rendition flights since 2013, which saw suspects secretly detained and transferred to foreign interrogation sites where they were tortured.

It is believed that airports, including Glasgow’s Prestwick, have been used as refuelling stops for such flights, including the rendition of Saifull Paracha, a 73-year-old still being held at Guantanamo Bay.

This summer, SNP Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf called on Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab to “formally make representations to the US government” to access the unredacted version of a US Senate report into CIA torture and rendition for the purposes of the investigation.

But Mr Yousaf told the Herald that his request had been refused by the Foreign Secretary in September, despite the dossier containing information “potentially vital” to the police investigation.

The report by the US Senate committee on intelligence, released in 2014, accused the CIA of torture in the years following September 11 2001.

However, only a redacted 525-page summary of the 6,700-page document has been published.

In a letter to the Foreign Office in July, Mr Yousaf said: “We have, in the past, sought confirmation that UK airports were not used for extraordinary rendition flights and that assurance was found to be inaccurate when the US government finally disclosed the use of Diego Garcia for one such flight.

“I am therefore inclined to seek the report itself, which should be a true and accurate picture, than to seek verbal assurances.”

The British government admitted in 2008 that two flights carrying detainees stopped at Diego Garcia, a British territory in the Indian Ocean.

Human rights group Reprieve said that the Foreign Office should be “ashamed” of its refusal to help Scotland Police with the ongoing investigation into torture complicity.

Director Maya Foa said: “Without obtaining this vital evidence from the US government, Police Scotland cannot hope to uncover the truth.

“The Scottish government must keep fighting for justice on behalf of those who were rendered: people like Saifullah Paracha.”

Tracy Doig, head of accountability at Freedom from Torture, accused Mr Raab of “an obstruction to truth and justice,” adding that it was “also typical behaviour of recent governments that have sought to block scrutiny and oversight of this dark chapter in our history.”

The Foreign Office refused to comment.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Syria Holds First Elections Since Fall of Assad
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
Top AI Researchers Are Heading Back to China as U.S. Struggles to Keep Pace
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Did the Houthis disrupt the internet in the Middle East? Submarine cables cut in the Red Sea
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
×