23 December 2005 -- Reports say an Italian judge has issued European arrest warrants for 22 purported CIA operatives in connection with the alleged kidnapping of an Egyptian cleric from Milan in 2003.
Sky TG24, an Italian television station, said the warrants were issued by Milan investigative magistrate Enrico Manzi.
Prosecutor Armando Spataro said the warrants allowed for the arrests of the suspects in any of the 25 EU member countries. Previously, Italy had issued domestic arrest warrants for the 22.
The 22 people allegedly were involved in the kidnapping of cleric Osama Moustafa Hassan Nasr, also known as Abu Omar.
The cleric, believed to belong to an Islamic terror group, was allegedly abducted on a Milan street on 17 February 2003, before being flown to Egypt, where he was reportedly tortured.
(AP/AFP)