The Swiss investigator looking into claims the CIA has operated secret detention centres in Europe says he has no doubt they exist, says a BBC story.

An excerpt:

Dick Marty accused the US of violating human rights and attacked European nations for their "shocking" passivity in the face of such violations.

He is due to give a preliminary report to the Council of Europe on 23 January.

The US has refused to confirm or deny the allegations over secret prisons. It has denied using or condoning torture.

Mr Marty was asked to lead the inquiry by the Council of Europe, the continent's human rights watchdog, after the claims surfaced late last year.

What was shocking was the passivity with which we all, in Europe, have welcomed these things Dick Marty

Speaking to journalists in Switzerland, he said he was personally convinced the US had undertaken illegal activities in Europe in transporting and detaining prisoners.

However, he acknowledged he had yet to produce concrete proof and said he expected his inquiry to last another 12 months.

"The question is: was the CIA really working in Europe?" he said. "I believe we can say today, without a doubt, yes."

Washington's policy "respects neither human rights nor the Geneva Conventions", he said.

He cited as evidence the case of Egyptian cleric and terror suspect Osama Mustafa Hassan, also known as Abu Omar, who was allegedly kidnapped by CIA agents from Milan in 2003 and flown to Egypt for interrogation.