Romania, Poland Scrutinized Over Prisons

Romania, Poland Scrutinized Over Prisons

Tuesday December 6, 2005 9:16 PM

AP Photo BRU105

By WILLIAM J. KOLE

Associated Press Writer

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) - Romania and Poland, stalwart allies in the
U.S.-led global war on terror, came under increasing fire Tuesday amid
widening reports that they hosted secret CIA prisons where top al-Qaida
suspects were interrogated.

Top leaders in both countries denied it, but lawmakers in Romania
called for a parliamentary investigation. The stakes are high: Although
they have curried favor with the U.S., any proof of complicity could
leave the former communist nations isolated and scorned in a Europe
demanding a full accounting from Washington, and threaten Romania's
drive to join the European Union in 2007.

In Poland, authorities said CIA prisons would be illegal, though
they were not planning an inquiry without evidence.

"For an investigation to start, there should be some sort of evidence,
proof that this in fact took place in Poland,'' Julita Sobczyk, a
spokeswoman for the prosecutor general, Zbigniew Ziobro, told The
Associated Press. Ziobro is also Poland's justice minister.