FAS | Intelligence | News | 2006 ||||

August 2006 Intelligence News

• Ex-FBI Agent Avoids Jail for Exposing Informant's Identity by Josh Gerstein, NY Sun, August 29. "A former FBI agent who disclosed an informant's identity to the target of an investigation of alleged Chinese espionage will receive a sentence of one year probation and a $1,000 fine, under a plea bargain approved yesterday by a federal judge."
• New ruling in AIPAC case raises questions about 'foreign agents' by Ron Kampeas, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, August 23. "A new pretrial ruling in the classified-information case against two former pro-Israel lobbyists raises new questions about what defines a 'foreign agent' and whether the government has the right to spy on lobbyists."
• An expansive view of 'state secrets' by Nat Hentoff, Washington Times, August 14. "When the Electronic Frontier Foundation filed suit against AT&T for, it said, giving the National Security Agency 'secret, direct access to phone calls and e-mail ... detailing the activities of millions of ordinary Americans,' the Justice Department went to the judge, as it often has in such cases, insisting the lawsuit not be heard because it involves 'state secrets'."
• Judge Rejects Dismissal of Pro-Israel Lobbyists Case by Jerry Markon, Washington Post, August 11. "A federal judge yesterday declined to throw out the criminal case against two pro-Israel lobbyists accused of violating the Espionage Act, denying their argument that the novel prosecution infringed on their constitutional right to free speech."
• Lobbyists to Stand Trial in Spy Case by Richard B. Schmitt, Los Angeles Times, August 11. "In a ruling with potentially broad implications, a federal judge said Thursday that the Bush administration could use espionage laws to prosecute private citizens who gained access to national defense information."
• Aipac Judge Throws Out First Amendment Claim by Josh Gerstein, New York Sun, August 11. "A federal judge has rejected claims by two pro-Israel lobbyists that their prosecution for trafficking in classified information violates the First Amendment and threatens to criminalize the routine activities of journalists, lobbyists, and foreign policy experts."
• Hizballah Leader Nasrallah Details Life History, Political Career, Ya Lesarat Ol-Hoseyn (Tehran), August 10. "My father Abdulkarim used to sell fruit and vegetables; my brothers would help him. When my father's financial status improved, he opened a small grocery store in the neighborhood, and I would go there to help him usually."
• Ethiopia Ratifies Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, CTBT Organization news release, August 9. "Ethiopia has deposited its instrument of ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) with the United Nations Secretary-General on 8 August 2006, bringing the total number of ratifications to 135."
• The DNI civil rights switcheroo by Shaun Waterman, United Press International, August 8. "The ACLU was one of the organizations that successfully campaigned for an office for civil liberties and privacy within the new structure that Congress gave U.S. intelligence in its huge overhaul in 2004. But they probably never imagined that one of their top lobbyists would quit to go work there."
• Classified intelligence bills often are unread by Susan Milligan, Boston Globe, August 6. "Nearly all members of the House of Representatives opted out of a chance to read this year's classified intelligence bill, and then voted on secret provisions they knew almost nothing about."
• Bond Legislation Targets Intelligence Leaks, news release, August 2. "U.S. Senator Kit Bond, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, today introduced legislation aimed at cracking down on intelligence leaks by government employees or contractors by making it easier for the government to prosecute and punish those who make public America's sensitive intelligence programs."