97. Condemns the fact that Sweden's expulsion in December 2001 of Mohammed El-Zari and Ahmed Agiza, Egyptian nationals who were seeking asylum in Sweden, was based solely on diplomatic assurances from the Egyptian Government, which did not provide effective safeguards against torture; also acknowledges that the Swedish government hindered them from exercising their rights in accordance with the European convention, by not informing their lawyers until before they had arrived in Cairo; deplores the fact that the Swedish authorities accepted an US offer to place at their disposal an aircraft which benefited from special overflight authorisation in order to transport the two men to Egypt; 98. Deplores the fact that the Swedish security police lost control over the enforcement of the expulsion of Ahmed Agiza and Mohammed El-Zari to Egypt, outside the rule of law, by remaining passive during the degrading treatment of the men by US agents at Bromma airport; 99. Underlines that the decision of the expulsion was taken at the highest executive level, from which no appeal was possible; 100. Fully endorses the UN Human Rights Committee's decision of 6 November 2006 in which it found that Sweden had breached the absolute ban on torture; similarly endorses a separate ruling by the UN Committee against Torture of 20 May 2005, which concluded that Sweden had violated the UN Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and stated that “procurement of diplomatic assurances (from Egypt), which, moreover, provided no mechanism for their enforcement, did not suffice to protect against this manifest risk"; 101. Thanks the Swedish Chief Parliamentary Ombudsman, Mats Melin, for his testimony to the Temporary Committee and applauds his investigation which concluded that the Swedish security service and airport police “were remarkably submissive to the American officials” and “lost control of the enforcement”, resulting in the ill-treatment of Ahmed Agiza and Mohammed El-Zari, including physical abuse and other humiliation, at the airport immediately before they were transported to Cairo; AUSTRIA 102. Notes the written explanations given on behalf of the Austrian Government but regrets that the Austrian Government did not consider it appropriate to appear before the Temporary Committee in order to hold an exchange of views about its position; 103. Notes that the persons referred to in the following paragraphs, Masaad Omer Behari and Gamal Menshawi, are individuals who did not and still do not have Austrian citizenship, whose freedom of movement was unrestricted; notes that the two men left Austria voluntarily and without undergoing checks by the Austrian authorities, and that they were arrested by foreign agencies, outside Austrian territory and outside the area of influence of the Austrian authorities, with no Austrian involvement; notes that, accordingly, these are clearly not cases of rendition of persons to foreign authorities; 104. Condemns the fact that Masaad Omer Behari, a Sudanese citizen and resident of Austria since 1989 who gave testimony to the Temporary Committee, was abducted at Amman airport on 12 January 2003 on his way back to Vienna from Sudan; 105. Deplores the fact that Masaad Omer Behari was later illegally secretly detained in a RR\382246XM.doc 17/77 PE 382.246v02-00 XM