Bump and Update: Buzzflash reader commentary on the Rule of Law: Somebelieve in it, some don't.

Congress is concerned, to say the least. John McCain voices his doubts about the policy, and Joe Biden calls for new leadership at the Justice Department.

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Original Post 10/23/04 9:30 om

A newly revealed Department of Justice memo allowed the CIA to secretly remove detainees from Iraq for questioning in other countries. Several experts contacted by the Post said such a policy violates the Geneva conventions:

The treaty prohibits the "[i]ndividual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory . . . regardless of their motive."

The 1949 treaty notes that a violation of this particular provision constitutes a "grave breach" of the accord, and thus a "war crime" under U.S. federal law, according to a footnote in the Justice Department draft. "For these reasons," the footnote reads, "we recommend that any contemplated relocations of 'protected persons' from Iraq to facilitate interrogation be carefully evaluated for compliance with Article 49 on a case by case basis." It says that even persons removed from Iraq retain the treaty's protections, which would include humane treatment and access to international monitors.

The author of the draft opinion was Jack L. Goldsmith, former director of the Office of Legal Counsel. This is the same office that drafted the now infamous "torture memo." If ever there was a time to clean house in the Justice Department, this is it.