"The Second Circuit Court of Appeals announced yesterday it would convene at least 13 judges in December for another hearing for Arar, the Ottawa engineer who was tortured and jailed in a Syrian prison after being whisked out of JFK Airport in September 2002, under a U.S. practice known as "extraordinary rendition.''

"A three-judge panel dismissed Arar's lawsuit in June, but the dissenting judge said the ruling gave the U.S. government licence "to violate constitutional rights with virtual impunity.''

"Yesterday's decision keeps alive the possibility that Arar could still become the first rendition victim to force the Bush administration to admit its role and compensate a victim in a case it maintains was an immigration matter.

"The court made its decision before it even received a petition from Arar's lawyers to examine the suit again, a decision legal observers said was extremely rare.

"Even when petitioned, the Second Circuit convenes the entire bench less than once a year, based on recent records.

"This is good news,'' said Maria LaHood, of the New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights lawyer who represents Arar.

"We are getting another shot and certainly the court thinks mistakes were made in the original ruling.

"This means Maher may finally get justice in this country.''

"Arar is seeking unspecified damages in a lawsuit that names, among others, John Aschroft, who was attorney general when Arar was rendered; Larry Thompson, the deputy attorney general who signed the rendition order; and Tom Ridge, a potential vice-presidential running mate for Republican John McCain, who was head of Homeland Security when Arar was rendered.

"In its June decision, the three-judge panel ruled Arar could not petition that court for redress because, under U.S. law, a court already exists where removal orders could be challenged.

"In the Arar case, however, testimony has made it clear that he was never given the opportunity to challenge the decision before he was flown out of the country."

Given the Bush regime's record on torture and extraordinary rendition, Busy, Cheney and the rest of their high and cabinet level torture team should be sitting in the doc at The Hague on January 21, 2009.