Italy relents, ex-CIA agent freed in Portugal

LISBON, Portugal — An American ex-CIA agent walked free from a Portuguese prison Wednesday, a day after Italy dropped its extradition request for the woman who was convicted of taking part in the U.S. kidnapping of a Muslim cleric in Milan 14 years ago.

A court in Portugal, where Sabrina de Sousa was arrested 18 months ago, ruled that she had to be released after Italy’s president granted her partial clemency late Tuesday.

President Sergio Mattarella shaved one year off de Sousa’s four-year sentence for her role in the abduction of Osama Moustafa Hassan Nas. Also known as Abu Omar, he was kidnapped from a Milan street in February 2003.

Italian lawyer Dario Bolognesi said de Sousa could opt to do community service instead of prison time. He told The Associated Press in Turin that he would advise her to meet with justice officials to work out a plan.

Neither de Sousa nor her Portuguese lawyer was immediately available for comment.

It was not clear whether de Sousa, who holds dual U.S.-Portuguese citizenship, will ask to serve the remaining three years of her sentence in Portugal. Under Italian law, she could remain under house arrest or carry out approved social services instead of serving prison time.

The kidnapping was carried out under the United States’ “extraordinary rendition” anti-terrorism program, which was launched after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. The program saw suspects kidnapped and transferred to centers abroad, where they were interrogated and often tortured.