Foreign minister denies German role in CIA rendition News
Foreign minister denies German role in CIA rendition

[JURIST] Germany's new foreign minister Frank Walter Steinmeier [BBC profile] Saturday denied allegations that German officials may have aided the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) [official website] in the December 2003 abduction of German citizen Khaled El-Masri [ACLU profile], who has filed a lawsuit charging the US with wrongful imprisonment [JURIST report; PDF text]. An anonymous source cited in a German newspaper article Friday alleged that El-Masri may have been targeted based on information that the German government shared with the CIA [JURIST report]. Steinmeier, who was serving as chief of staff to former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder [BBC profile] when the abduction occurred, will face questions from the German parliament about the incident on Wednesday. Reuters has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Charlemagne crowned Holy Roman Emporer

On December 25, 800 A.D., Charlemagne was crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III in Rome, Italy. During his lifetime, Charlemagne united most of Western Europe for the first time since the fall of the Western Roman Empire. He is credited with spreading the rule of law throughout his dominions as well as starting the French and German monarchies.

President Andrew Johnson pardoned Confederates

On December 25, 1868, President Andrew Johnson granted an unconditional pardon to all who had been involved in "insurrection or rebellion" during the US Civil War.