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Extraordinary surrender is a controversial practice used by Western nations for counter-terrorism, involving illegal transportation of suspects to foreign territory. Critics argue it violates human rights and international agreements, while proponents claim it’s necessary for time-sensitive information. The CIA is the main orchestrator, and suspects are often taken to countries with lax human rights protections and subjected to torture. Critics argue evidence obtained under duress is inadmissible in court, and innocent people have been held in solitary confinement for extended periods.
Extraordinary surrender is a practice of dubious legality practiced by several major Western nations, including the United States. It involves the illegal transport of suspects into foreign territory and is used specifically in the field of counter-terrorism. The practice has many outspoken critics, as it appears to clearly violate human rights along with international agreements on the treatment of prisoners. Proponents argue that extraordinary delivery is the only way to get crucial, time-sensitive information into the right hands.
Although many people associate the extraordinary surrender with the US “War on Terrorism” that began after 2001, the practice had been well established by the mid-1990s. Indeed, it was authorized and developed thanks to an executive order signed by President Bill Clinton, who was no doubt aware of the murky legal ground that the US government would tread as a result. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) appears to be the main orchestrator of extraordinary renditions.
There are different forms of this practice. In one case, a suspect is captured in a foreign country, essentially being kidnapped extrajudicially without the host country’s agreement or consent. This is a clear violation of national sovereignty and extradition legal agreements. Once caught, the suspect is taken to another country, usually one with more lax human rights protections, for questioning. In many cases, this interrogation clearly included torture, which is not a legal, ethical or reasonable method of extracting information. In other cases, foreign nationals have been removed from American soil and secretly flown out of the country.
In addition to interrogating people in questionable circumstances, extraordinary renditions also appear to be linked to secret detention facilities. The Washington Post detailed the existence of these so-called “black sites” in 2005, in an article that also discussed techniques used to move detainees from one country to another without detection. The New Yorker was also instrumental in exposing the practice of extraordinary renditions.
Critics argue that evidence obtained under duress is not admissible in court, and that therefore the extraordinary rendition does not favor US legal investigations into torture. Also, torture is illegal in the United States, so the country is essentially outsourcing its torture to the nations that will carry it out. Furthermore, there have been several well-documented cases of the surrender of innocent people, who have been held in solitary confinement for months or years in a clear violation of their human rights.
