Extraordinary rendition (or irregular rendition) is the abduction and extrajudicial transfer of a person from one nation to another.[1] "Torture by proxy" is used by some critics to describe situations in which the United States has transferred suspected terrorists to countries known to practice torture.[2][3][4]
The United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) runs a global abduction and internment operation of suspected terrorists, known as “extraordinary rendition”, which since 2001 has captured an estimated 3,000 people and transported them around the world.[5][6][7][8] Rendered persons have undergone torture by the receiving states, and it has been alleged that this has occurred with the knowledge or acquiescence of the governments of the United States and the United Kingdom. Condoleezza Rice, then United States Secretary of State, said in an April 2006 radio interview that the United States does not transfer people to places where it is known they will be tortured.[1][9][10]