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US court to rehear case of Canadian sent to Syria
A US court will take the unusual step of rehearing a lawsuit it earlier rejected from a Canadian who claims the US government sent him illegally to Syria where he was tortured for a year, lawyers said on Thursday.
- Reuters
- Published: 23:58 August 15, 2008
New York: A US court will take the unusual step of rehearing a lawsuit it earlier rejected from a Canadian who claims the US government sent him illegally to Syria where he was tortured for a year, lawyers said on Thursday.
Maher Arar, 37, a Syrian-born software engineer, sued US government officials in 2004 over his 2002 arrest when his flight stopped over in New York. He was then deported to Syria because of suspected links to Al Qaida.
In June, a three-judge US appeals court panel, affirming a lower court decision, ruled 2-1 that Arar failed to establish that the federal court had jurisdiction to hear his complaint.
But on Thursday, that same court ordered that the case be reheard by the entire Second Circuit Court of Appeals - about 12 judges - on December 9.
The order was issued without either side requesting a rehearing, a move that the New York-based Centre for Constitutional Rights, which is representing Arar, called "an extremely rare move".
"We are very encouraged," said Arar's lawyer, Maria LaHood. "For the court to take such extraordinary action on its own indicates the importance the judges place on the case and means that Maher may finally see justice in this country."
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