Seanad Report: The Leader of the House, Ms Mary O'Rourke, said that, having read material provided by a Department of Foreign Affairs official, she was convinced that the good name of Shannon was not besmirched by any of the facts contained in it.
The information supplied to her confirmed that a particular aircraft owned by a small US airline had used Shannon Airport on 13 occasions.
Offering to make the material available to Mr David Norris (Ind) and to other members, she said: "It's all there. I think there are many interesting facts but, having perused it all, I am convinced that everything is in order and kosher."
The printed items to which Ms O'Rourke referred consisted of a Sunday newspaper report of last May and a series of replies given to Dáil questions between September 30th and November 2nd last, along with briefing material for the Minister for Foreign Affairs.
A visiting group of American congressmen was present earlier when Mr Norris renewed his demand for information about the use of Shannon by the Gulf Stream aircraft.
He asked if Ms O'Rourke could inquire through the relevant Ministers if the plane was being used in a process, endorsed by the Central Intelligence Agency, under which a clandestine team of special forces had been set up to evade international law for the purpose of kidnap, and involving the transport of suspected terrorists around the world.
Was the Government aware that a former CIA member had stated: "If you want a serious interrogation, send a prisoner to Jordan; if you want them to be tortured, send them to Syria; if you want someone to disappear, send them to Egypt."
Mr Norris said he was putting these specific questions because a man whom he had previously named, Maher Arar, a Syrian-born Canadian citizen, had been kidnapped at JFK Airport.
He had been taken to Washington subsequently, "probably in this jet, was taken probably through Shannon Airport and taken to Syria and tortured."
The American government was now in court over this issue. "I want to know can it be confirmed that this jet was used and that it landed at Shannon Airport and that, thereby, the Irish Government are complicit in the violation of international law and the commission of serious war crimes," Mr Norris said.
He believed that the Irish people were entitled to answers on this matter.
Mr Tim Dooley (FF) said he deplored the way Mr Norris and others continued to destroy the good name of Shannon and the good name of the US government, which had been extremely supportive of this country through many years.
One of the Dáil replies Ms O'Rourke furnished to Mr Norris said the US authorities had confirmed that prisoners were not being transported through Irish airports to Guantanamo or elsewhere.
The US also confirmed that it would not seek to use Irish airports for this purpose without seeking authorisation.