Mr Malinowski says she cannot confirm the allegations because they are true, and she cannot deny them because that would put European allies in an extremely difficult position.
That said, what is nothing short of amazing is that confirming the allegations would not put her or the Bush administration in a difficult position, but the Europeans. This means HRW does not think any serious domestic political consequences for the Bush administration will come from this. And that is amazing. guaranteed to evoke a violent reaction from police is to challenge their right to "define the situation." --- David Graeber citing Marc Cooper
She cannot confirm them, because they are illegal, and she would thus be guilty of a crime if she admitted to (knowing about) it.
She cannot deny it because it would prove to us Europeans that the Americans can lie to our representatives without fear of consequences.
This is really what this is about. Legal fall out in the US, and political fall out in Europe. In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes
