LONDON, Jan. 24 (UPI) -- The British government is facing renewed pressure over claims U.S. rendition flights passed through its territory after a report backed the allegations.
A preliminary report by the Council of Europe, the European Union's human rights watchdog, said European governments were almost certainly aware U.S. flights transferring terror suspects abroad for interrogation were passing through their airports.
Washington admits rendering suspects abroad but denies it is for torture.
In Britain, human rights groups and politicians said it was time for the government to fully investigate the allegations.
Conservative parliamentarian Andrew Tyrie, a member of the cross-party parliamentary group on extraordinary renditions, said ministers had provided "scant evidence" that adequate steps had been taken to find out the facts.
Reports have suggested that some 210 flights operated by the CIA have passed through Britain since 2001. The government says it has received no requests for prisoner transfers under the Bush administration; however a leaked memo recently indicated otherwise.
A well-placed diplomatic source told United Press International in December the Foreign Office and Downing Street were aware rendition flights had passed through Britain and were "simply hoping it (the issue) is going to go away."
Director of the human rights group Liberty, Shami Chakrabarti, said: "It is time for our government to get its story straight -- not about what it did not know, but what its going to do about such serious alleged violations of human rights and U.K. sovereignty."
Members of the parliamentary group are to meet with representatives from Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Liberty and Redress Wednesday to discuss the report's findings.
