MADRID — Spain’s attorney general has rejected opening an investigation into whether six Bush administration officials sanctioned torture against terrorism suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, saying Thursday that a U.S. courtroom would be the proper forum.
Candido Conde-Pumpido’s remarks severely dampen the chance of a case moving forward against the Americans, including former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. Conde-Pumpido said such a trial would have turned Spain’s National Court “into a plaything” to be used for political ends.
A court official told The Associated Press that an announcement would come today. He said prosecutors would stop short of a call for dismissal but would raise objections that would make it impossible for it to proceed in its current form.
The complaint also named ex-Undersecretary of Defense Douglas Feith; former Vice President Dick Cheney’s chief of staff, David Addington; Justice Department officials John Yoo and Jay S. Bybee; and Pentagon lawyer William Haynes.
