(Washington Post, 4.12.05) In May 2004, the White House dispatched the U.S. ambassador in Germany to pay an unusual visit to that country's interior minister. Ambassador Daniel R. Coats carried instructions from the State Department transmitted via the CIA's Berlin station because they were too sensitive and highly classified for regular diplomatic channels, according to several people with knowledge of the conversation.
Coats informed the German minister that the CIA had wrongfully imprisoned one of its citizens, Khaled Masri, for five months, and would soon release him, the sources said. There was also a request: that the German government not disclose what it had been told even if Masri went public. The U.S. officials feared exposure of a covert action program designed to capture terrorism suspects abroad and transfer them among countries, and possible legal challenges to the CIA from Masri and others with similar allegations.

Warum grad Schily? Darum:

Senior State Department officials decided to approach Interior Minister Schily, who had been a steadfast Bush supporter even when differences over the Iraq war strained ties between the two countries. Ambassador Coats had excellent rapport with Schily.

Andere wussten ebenfalls schon lang davon

(SPIEGEL) Frank-Walter Steinmeier, einst Schröders mächtiger Mann im Kanzleramt und intimer Kenner aller Vorgänge, ist nun Außenminister. August Hanning, unter Rot-Grün Chef des gut informierten Auslandsgeheimdienstes BND, ist nun Staatssekretär im Innenministerium. Keiner dieser Beteiligten kann ernsthaft Überraschung oder gar Empörung über die Maßnahmen der CIA vorgaukeln. Sie kennen die Details seit Jahren zu gut.

Siehe auch Telepolis.