• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • WHAT’S ON FOX
  • ABOUT
    • Meet Our Team
      • Our Journalists
      • Sales & Programming
    • Contact WSFX
      • Sales & Programming
  • Welcome Home
  • Montford Point
  • ALL-STAR BASEBALL CONTEST

Fox Wilmington WSFX-TV

Wilmington, NC | Local news Weather and Sports

  • Local News
    • Unsung Heroes
      • Nominate an Unsung Hero
  • Local Weather
  • National
  • Sports
    • Carolina Panthers
    • Panthers Game Schedule
  • Politics
    • NC Voter Information
  • Health
  • Entertainment
    • What’s on TV?
  • MORE…
    • Technology
    • Science
    • Lifestyle
    • What’s Happening Wilmington

Ex-CIA officer linked to 2003 kidnapping of terror suspect leaves Italy, fears for safety, report says

October 27, 2019 By Bradford Betz

A former CIA officer implicated in the 2003 kidnapping of a terrorism suspect in Milan has left Italy out of fears for her safety, Italian media reported Saturday.

Sabrina de Sousa, 623, is one of 26 people convicted by Italy in absentia over the 2003 kidnapping of Egyptian cleric Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, also known as Abu Omar.

Sousa denied involvement but was the only one to be sentenced for the abduction.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella pardoned De Sousa in 2017 but she was still required to perform community service through 2020.

De Sousa, a Portuguese-U.S. citizen, said she decided to leave Italy after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and CIA Director Gina Haspel’s visit to Rome earlier this month, Il Corriere Della Sera reported.

“I was terrified of the consequences that I could face,” De Sousa said. “The arrival of Haspel in Italy confirmed to the Italian government that the U.S. administration had washed its hands of my case.”

It was unclear what connection, if any, Pompeo and Haspel’s visits had with De Sousa’s case. Il Corriere della Sera quoted her as saying “recent changes to the Whistleblower Act” will allow her to reveal further details on the case.

De Sousa’s lawyer, Andre Saccucci, did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.

WASHINGTON POST PUBLISHES AL-BAGHDADI HEADLINE REFERRING TO ISIS LEADER AS ‘AUSTERE RELIGIOUS SCHOLAR’

The kidnapping of Nasr was part of the CIA’s controversial “extraordinary rendition” program, implemented under President George W. Bush, and entailed taking terror suspects to foreign countries where torture was allowed.

Nasr claimed he was transferred to his native Egypt and tortured.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

De Sousa has denied any involvement, claiming she was not in Milan on the day of the cleric’s abduction. If extradited, De Sousa would have been the first CIA officer and U.S. diplomat imprisoned over the agency’s “extraordinary rendition” program.

Fox News’ Cristina Corbin contributed to this report.

Filed Under: National Headlines

Primary Sidebar


 

Follow Us On Facebook



TRENDING NOW

Father and son from Wilmington killed in Virginia plane crash

Pender EMS and Fire partners with CFCC for new apprenticeship program

Man sentenced in New Hanover County to life in prison for sex offense denied parole

Groundbreaking for Boiling Spring Lakes dam project scheduled for June 17

Lumbee Film Festival to feature alligator wrestling documentary

Footer

PUBLIC FILE INFO

Individuals with disabilities who have questions about the content of our public file or website may contact Isabella Gano by phone at
(910) 343-8826 or by email at Isabella.gano@foxwilmington.com

 
 » WSFX FCC Public File
»EEO Report
»Closed Captioning

SITE MAP

  • Local Headlines
  • Coronavirus
  • Local Weather
  • National Headlines
  • Sports
  • Politics
  • Health

WSFX TV

  • Livestream Newscast
  • Meet Our Team
  • Sales & Programming
  • WELCOME HOME
  • Go With The Pros
  • Medically Speaking
  • WHAT’S ON FOX

Copyright © 2023 · American Spirit Media LLC · WSFX TV · Wilmington NC · Terms of Service · Privacy Policy