ACLU slams move to deport suspect

WASHINGTON, June 4 (UPI) -- The American Civil Liberties Union Monday slammed the U.S. government's plan to send Pennsylvania resident Sameh Khouzam to Egypt.

The ACLU noted the U.S. government had said it had won "diplomatic assurances" from Egypt and that it then started the process of sending Khouzam there last week. However, the ACLU cited "a ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit that he would likely be tortured upon his return."

"The Egyptian authorities are notorious for their routine use of torture. The U.S. government's reliance on their word makes a mockery of its treaty obligations under the Torture Convention," said Amrit Singh, ACLU Immigrants' Rights Project staff attorney. "It is illegal and immoral to send Mr. Khouzam back to a country where he will likely be tortured."

The ACLU said Khouzam, a Coptic Christian, came to the United States in 1998 "as a refugee from religious persecution in Egypt. In February, 2004, a U.S. Court of Appeals granted him relief from removal under the Convention Against Torture, finding that it was 'more likely than not' that he would be tortured if returned to Egypt. Khouzam remained in immigration detention until he was released in February 2006. He has been living with his family and working in Pennsylvania."

"Our government should be smart enough to know that it shouldn't believe the empty promises of Egyptian diplomats that they won't torture," said Christopher Anders, ACLU legislative counsel. "The Egyptian diplomats can cross their fingers and say they won't torture again, but their full torture chambers tell the real story."

Supporters of the Bush administration say that the ability to deport terror suspects to their countries of origin is essential in the ongoing war on terror.