The Canadian government has acknowledged for the first time that one of the most well-known victims of CIA extraordinary rendition is a completely innocent man. On Monday, a judge concluded a major investigation into the case of Maher Arar. He’s the Syrian-born Canadian detained nearly four years ago by US authorities at JFK airport in New York. Rather than being released and sent home to his family in Canada, Arar ended up in a Syrian jail where he was repeatedly tortured. US officials accused him of links to al-Qaeda. On Monday, Justice Dennis O’Connor wrote: “I am able to say categorically that there is no evidence to indicate that Mr. Arar has committed any offence or that his activities constituted a threat to the security of Canada.” The inquiry concluded that Canadian officials did not play a direct role in Arar’s detention or deportation. However the judge found that the U.S. government’s decision to send Arar to Syria was likely based on inaccurate and misleading information provided by Canadian authorities. The judge also criticized Canadian officials for leaking confidential and sometimes inaccurate information about Arar to the media for the purpose of damaging his reputation or protecting the government’s interests. Although the report focused on the Canadian government, Judge O’Connor also had criticism for US officials. He wrote: “The American authorities who handled Mr. Arar’s case treated Mr. Arar in a most regrettable fashion. They removed him to Syria against his wishes and in the face of his statements that he would be tortured if sent there.”