WASHINGTON, March 10 (UPI) -- Two Democratic House members and human rights groups rallied Thursday to protest what they called the "outsourcing" of torture by the Bush administration.
Reps. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and Betty McCollum, D-Minn., joined representatives from several human rights groups to demand an end to the practice of "extraordinary rendition," in which they said the United States sends prisoners to other countries that are known to use torture.
The rally included representatives from Human Rights Watch, Human Rights First, Amnesty International, Association of the Bar of City of New York/NYU School of Law and the Center for Constitutional Rights.
Media reports this week said the White House issued a directive authorizing the CIA to hand over prisoners to other countries for interrogation, including countries known to routinely practice torture, Markey's office said.
The office cited a CBS News "60 Minutes" story that highlighted the alleged use of a "torture plane" to send prisoners to 40 countries, including human rights abusers such as Syria and Uzbekistan.
