British government lobbied U.S. politicians to hide their involvement in CIA torture and rendition program

Records published under Britain's Freedom of Information (FOI) Act have compounded concerns that the UK government lobbied US officials to keep Britain's role in CIA torture and rendition out of a soon-to-be published Senate report. Newly-released data reveals Britain's ambassador to the US, Peter Westmacott, engaged in at least 21 separate meetings with members of the US Senate's Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) prior to its publication of this report, heightening existing allegations that the British government may be seeking to sanitize the document. Westmacott met with key Democrats and Republicans on the SSCI throughout the body's investigation of the CIA program, records obtained by the UK legal charity Reprieve reveal. Of particular note are two separate meetings with Senator Feinstein in the immediate aftermath of the US government's decision to publish what is expected to be a damning report on CIA torture, interrogation and rendition.