A Canadian man who says he was tortured for nearly a year while being held in Syria is filing a lawsuit against both that country and Jordan. Maher Arar is seeking millions in damages.

Arar's lawyer says the Syrian-born Canadian citizen simply wants justice.

"He was tortured illegally in violation of Syrian, Jordanian and international law," said Lorne Waldman.

"He wants this to be acknowledged and he wants the people who tortured him to be brought to justice," he added.

Arar, 33, was detained as a suspected terrorist in New York in September 2002 and questioned. Though he was never charged, he was suddenly sent to Syria, his birth country, via Jordan.

There, he says he was beaten, kept in a tiny cell, and forced to sign a false confession. He was released without explanation in early October and described months of torture upon returning to Canada.

Arar is filing suit in Canadian court against both Syria and Jordan. He's seeking $31 million for kidnapping, false imprisonment and torture.

Federal law currently prevents foreign governments from being sued in Canadian courts, so Arar and his lawyer are asking Ottawa to change the law.

The Department of Justice is reportedly examining the case.