The apology came from members of a U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee looking into the case of the Syrian-born Canadian who was deported in 2002 from the U.S. to Syria where he was tortured for more than ten months.

Arar did not personally go to Washington. He would likely have been turned away at the border because he is still on a U.S. terrorism watch list.

Instead, he made a statement via video conference from Ottawa.

The 37-year-old Canadian told American politicians about the ordeal he faced after the U.S. sent him to Syria.

Arar told the American legislators the Syrians placed him in a small coffin-like cell, beat him with shredded cables, and tortured him regularly.

"Life in that cell was hell. I spent 10 months and 10 days in that grave," Arar said.

In response, Bill Delahunt, a Democrat on the joint congressional committee said bluntly: "Let me personally give you what our government has not: an apology."

Another member said that the U.S. should be "ashamed" of its actions, but Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, defended the practice of extraordinary rendition.

"That is no excuse to end a program which has protected the lives of hundreds of thousands if not millions of American lives," said Rohrabacher.

Under extraordinary rendition, the U.S. ships off suspected terrorists to third countries for interrogation, where suspected terrorists are allegedly tortured. The U.S. denies that Arar was a victim of extraordinary rendition. Instead it argues that the Canadian citizen was deported to Syria under its immigration laws.

Arar told the subcommittee members that the pain from the torture was so great that he told Syrian authorities whatever they wanted to hear. At one point he falsely told them that he was involved with al Qaeda and had gone to Afghanistan.

"Let me be clear: I am not a terrorist, I am not a member of al Qaeda or any terror group. I am a father, a husband, and an engineer. I am also a victim of the immoral practice of extraordinary rendition," he said.

The Syrians released Arar without charges and he was returned to Canada. The Harper government apologized to Arar for Canada's role in helping U.S. authorities in the lead-up to his deportation to Syria. He was given $10 million in compensation.

The Bush administration still has not apologized, but has instead tried to quash Arar's attempts at bringing the matter before U.S. courts. Arar says the U.S. government's refusal to allow the legal system deal with his case is a continuation of the psychological abuse he's confronted since his ordeal began.

"The abuse is still on going because they have not allowed me to pursue justice in the courts," Arar said.

Arar's ordeal began on Sept. 26, 2002, when he stopped over in New York while returning from a vacation. American border guards detained the Canadian and authorities later sent him via private jet to Syria.

An inquiry in Canada found that the RCMP incorrectly told American authorities that Arar was an Islamic fundamentalist. They also gave other incriminating but incorrect information about Arar to the U.S. The inquiry found that the Mounties actions likely led to Arar's arrest and deportation, and it also cleared him of any terrorist links.

Legal experts in the U.S. say the government in that country is violating a 1998 law which specifically prohibits it from sending people to countries where they are likely to be tortured. The Bush administration has claimed that it gets assurances from countries that prisoners handed over to them will not be tortured.