German Authorities Deny Knowledge of el-Masri Interrogator

Khaled el-Masri, the Lebanese-born man at the center of the probe, gave the panel his account of what happened to him nearly three years ago. A naturalized German citizen, he insisted he was interrogated by a German agent.

"Based on the way he looked and his accent, he was definitely German," he said. He explained that the man he knew as "Sam" made his first appearance in the Kabul prison where el-Masri was being held in May 2004, and that his treatment improved immediately.

El-Masri said he had recognized "Sam" in photographs of an official with the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA).

Nonetheless, according to Martin Hofmann, one of the state prosecutors investigating the case, "there is no evidence to suggest that el-Masri's account of his abduction is not accurate."

But both German intelligence and the BKA have denied that "Sam" works for either body and said they could prove that the man identified by el-Masri was in Germany at the time of his abduction.

Does Germany sanction torture?

While one burning question at Thursday's hearing was the identity of "Sam," another was the extent of German authorities' involvement in the case.

Wolfgang Neskovic, the Left Party's member of the oversight committee, said that the basic principle at stake was whether Germany was willing to sanction torture as a tool in the war on terror.

So far, the committee's findings have been neutral.

"There's still no proof that German authorities were involved in the incident," said Thomas Opermann from the investigation committee.

Injustice

But el-Masri's attorney has argued otherwise.

"If it turns out that German authorities were involved, then it wouldn't be up to us to demand action. What happened was a huge injustice," said his lawyer, Manfred Gnjidic.

El-Masri says he was kidnapped while in Macedonia in late 2003 and then transferred to a CIA-run prison in Afghanistan where he was held for four months. After his release he says he was dumped in Albania.

Recalling his ordeal, el-Masri struggled to contain himself and asked for a break in questioning.

Opposition MPs are outraged by his account.

"He was kidnapped, and interrogated under horrible conditions in Afghanistan after being questioned in Macedonia," said Hans-Christian Ströbele from the Green party.

The inquiry is scheduled to meet again next Thursday to continue looking into el-Masri's allegations.