The Misuse of Torture in Rendition

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What if someone you love just disappeared? The United States used this same idea to install a program known as the extraordinary rendition. It was put in place during the Clinton administration, but became publically recognized after 9/11. In the context of the movie, Rendition, rendition refers to the transfer of suspected terrorists outside of the United States to a foreign country, where harsh interrogation and torture takes place. Although Rendition was installed to protect the United States from terrorist attacks, the rendition of Anwar El- Ibrahimi represents the government’s misuse of the program.

In the movie, Rendition, a terrorist bombing occurs in a foreign country and an American envoy is killed. An investigation is then dispatched, which leads to an Egyptian who has been living in the Unites States for many years and who is married to a United States citizen. This man, Anwar El- Ibrahimi, is then apprehended on his way home from a business meeting in Egypt. As Anwar El- Ibrahimi is now a terrorist suspect and is appeared to have gone missing on his flight back to the United States, his wife, Isabella El- Ibrahimi and a CIA analyst are trying to figure out where he is. The U.S government wants to find the mastermind who committed such terrorist attacks so they can prevent future attempts like these. In the movie, Alan Smith, CIA Analyst, confronts Corrine Williams, CIA’s Head of Operation Rendition, on human rights and she replies, “Honey, this is nasty business. There are upwards of 7,000 people in central London alive tonight, because of information that we elicited just this way. So maybe you put your head on your pillow and feel proud for saving one man while 7,000 perish, but I got grandkids in Londo...

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...of. The fact that Anwar El- Ibrahimi is abducted under reasons not justified by the cause is crossing the line. The movie Rendition exemplifies the misuse of torture as a way to show us the difference between what is right and what is wrong. Although someone seems like a terrorist, the U.S government cannot abduct such person solely on that assumption. One must look at the background and analyze their entire lives. Torture and rendition are a very sensitive and extremely controversial issue, but one must take a step back and realize what stops the government from torturing oneself.

Works Cited

"Rendition Quotes." Movie Quotes - Subzin.com. Web. 22 Dec.

2010. .

"Rendition (2007) - IMDb." The Internet Movie Database (IMDb).

Web. 22 Dec. 2010. .

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