[JURIST] The head of the Council of Europe [official website] investigation into possible secret CIA prisons in Eastern Europe said Friday that the existence of large detention centers for US terror detainees in the region was unlikely. In a statement before the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council, Europe's human rights watchdog body, Swiss Senator Dick Marty indicated that it is still possible that the US detained prisoners in the area for "10,15 or 30 days" without the knowledge or consent of the host nation. The Council of Europe began its investigation [COE informational memorandum text] following reports [JURIST report] by the Washington Post and Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] regarding possible illegal prison transfers by the CIA.

Meanwhile, the Council of Europe's human rights commissioner alleged Friday in an interview with French newspaper Le Monde [AFP report; Le Monde article in French] that the US maintained a detention center similar to Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] in Kosovo shortly after 9/11. Alvaro Gil-Robles charged that prisoners at the mini-detention camp located in US military's Camp Bondsteel facility were subjected to "shocking" conditions. AP has more.