Switzerland to probe information leak over secret CIA prisons

www.chinaview.cn 2006-01-10 19:23:29


GENEVA, Jan. 10 (Xinhuanet) -- Switzerland will launch a parliamentary probe into the leak of secret information giving details of alleged clandestine CIA prisons in Europe, Swiss Radio International (SRI) reported online on Tuesday.

Hans Hofmann, who is heading the parliamentary sub-committee investigating how the SonntagsBlick newspaper got hold of the classified documents, said he is determined to plug the leak.

SonntagsBlick claimed last Sunday to have received a copy of a fax sent by Egypt's foreign ministry to the Egyptian embassy in London confirming the existence of secret prisons in Europe. The fax was intercepted by the Swiss intelligence service in Nov. 2005.

"This document was clearly not intended to be made public," SRI quoted Hofmann as saying, "We will conduct a very thorough inquiry to determine the source of this leak and will try to make sure that it does not happen again."

The story is embarrassing for the Swiss government, as it has consistently denied possessing any evidence of U.S. jails for suspected terrorists in Europe.

Government ministers distanced themselves from the report which said evidence has been available since Nov. 10 last year. Defense Minister Samuel Schmid, who was Swiss president last year, told the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper that he might consider legal action against the SonntagsBlick.


(It just gets stranger and stranger)

Must be some one who reads Germany. Fr or It. on this site who could look the list over. See Thousands of newspapers on line. Odd to think telling about them, the prisons, seems to be the bad part of this. These people in power do seem to live in their own time zone.

Polish your French here (Le Temps (de Genève)):

La CIA cherche à colmater les fuites qui ont dévoilé les «sites noirs»
LT.ch - 11.01.2006
Le directeur de l'agence de renseignement organise une reprise en main pour fermer la bouche de ses espions trop bavards, ou tentés par la littérature. Les Suisses, de leur côté, cherchent à calmer le jeu.
La CIA face aux fuites
Les tentatives suisses pour calmer le jeu
Le «kiosque»: «Le joli coup des espions suisses»
Le dossier spécial
Le forum: «Que doit faire la Suisse?»

(Quick translation of that first phrase: "The director of the intelligence agency takes a hard line in order to close the mouths of too-forward (or too-forthcoming - literally, too brave) spies, or those tempted to engage in the literary. The Swiss people, on their side, seek to calm the waters (or play down the situation)."

I'm still seeing apparently suppresed all mention of a certain swiss technology/agency department the name of which is that of "a chalcedony quartz with a fine texture and black color" :hi: .

ed. nb: "Le MPC enquête aussi pour savoir qui a transmis le document au journal zurichois. La violation du secret de fonction peut entraîner jusqu'à cinq ans de prison. L'Office de l'auditeur en chef de l'armée (les SRS dépendent du Département de la défense) a ouvert sa propre enquête lundi. Mais la procédure administrative annoncée par le DDPS n'a finalement pas été activée. "