Abousfian Abdelrazik, shown during a press conference in on June 15, 2011 in Montreal, was visiting his ailing mother in Sudan in 2003 when he was arrested on suspicion of having ties to terrorists and being an associate of al-Qaeda. Paul Chiasson/Canadian Press

The national spy watchdog has yet to report on the Canadian Security Intelligence Service's role in the overseas interrogation of a Montreal man — even though CSIS itself asked for a prompt review more than two years ago.

All indications are that the Security Intelligence Review Committee's probe of the Abousfian Abdelrazik case has died a quiet death or, at best, languishes in limbo.

Paul Champ, Abdelrazik's lawyer, said he believes the watchdog abandoned the investigation following some initial spadework by then-committee member Dr. Arthur Porter.

"It's our understanding that the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) is not looking into that issue at all anymore," Champ said Friday.

In a recent interview, Porter declined to discuss the matter. He resigned this month amid questions about his private business dealings. The review committee, composed of federal appointees, did not respond to followup inquiries about the Abdelrazik probe.

CSIS spokeswoman Tahera Mufti also declined comment.

Abdelrazik questioned over alleged terrorist links

Abdelrazik, a Canadian with family in Montreal, was arrested but not charged during a 2003 visit to see his mother in Sudan.

He says CSIS and American FBI officers interrogated him over alleged terrorist links. Abdelrazik, now back in Montreal, also claims the Sudanese authorities who tortured him used questions provided by CSIS.

Canada says it knew nothing of the purported abuse.

In March 2009, then-CSIS director Jim Judd said the spy service does not arrange for the arrest of Canadians overseas. In a highly unusual move, he asked the intelligence review committee to examine CSIS's role in the Abdelrazik case.

In a letter to the committee, Judd said CSIS employees had conducted themselves in accordance with the CSIS Act, Canadian law and policy.

"In the interest of clarifying this matter for Canadians, I request that the Security Intelligence Review Committee — at the earliest opportunity — investigate and report on the performance of the service's duties and functions with respect to the case of Abousfian Abdelrazik."

Two months later, the review committee said it would indeed look into the case in direct response to a complaint lodged the previous July by Abdelrazik and his lawyers. In the end, the complaint and Judd's request were rolled into a single review committee investigation, Champ said.

But the investigation stalled last year when the committee refused to disclose CSIS documentation that would help Abdelrazik prepare for cross-examination, Champ said.

Without the documents, Abdelrazik would have faced questions from CSIS lawyers trying to poke holes in his statements about events that took place years earlier, which "would have been procedurally unfair in our opinion," Champ said.

As a result, Abdelrazik withdrew his complaint.

"We just decided that it wasn't worthwhile playing anymore," Champ said. "We completely lost faith in that process."

It's unclear what happened next. The review committee has not publicly reported on the Abdelrazik affair, something it has done in other high-profile cases.

Federal Court Justice Russel Zinn concluded in a June 2009 ruling that CSIS "was complicit in the detention" of Abdelrazik in Sudan.

Zinn said that finding may change "if and when full and complete information" is provided by the spy service as to its role.

The federal government did not appeal the court ruling.

While he was behind bars in Sudan, Abdelrazik's passport expired.

Government breached Abdelrazik's constitutional rights: Zinn

He subsequently lived in makeshift quarters at the Canadian Embassy in Khartoum.

In his ruling, Zinn said the government breached Abdelrazik's constitutional rights by denying him a temporary passport.

He also said it appeared then-Foreign Affairs minister Lawrence Cannon did not follow set procedures when he refused Abdelrazik the travel document, nor did the minister explain whether Abdelrazik posed a security risk if returned to Canada.

In addition, the judge concluded that by mid-2004, Canadian authorities had determined they would not take any active steps to assist the man's return to Canada, and would consider refusing him a passport in order to thwart his homecoming.

Abdelrazik, who returned to Canada in late June 2009, is suing the federal government.

In July 2006, the United States branded Abdelrazik a supporter of the al-Qaeda terrorist network, and the United Nations subsequently added him to a security blacklist.

Abdelrazik has formally asked to be removed from the list and could receive a decision as early as next week.

In his court judgment, Zinn said there was no evidence Abdelrazik is affiliated with al-Qaeda. The RCMP has said there is no evidence linking Abdelrazik to criminal activities and CSIS maintains it is not interested in him.