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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
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March 8th,
2007 - Lawsuit: CIA Censored Whistleblower |
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Lawsuit: CIA Censored Whistleblower United Press International March 8, 2007 Washington - A new lawsuit
alleges the CIA blocked a former employee from releasing information about
the relationship of the CIA with a suspect foreign national. Franz Boening, who was
employed by CIA from 1980 to 2005, claims that "the CIA maintained a
special relationship with a foreign individual who committed unlawful human
rights violations and criminal acts with the knowledge of the CIA."
Boening filed the lawsuit against the CIA this week in a district court in
Washington, D.C. Boening also alleged that he
has faced retaliation for attempting to express his concerns about the
relationship. The CIA may have violated
U.S. laws during its more than 10-year year relationship with the foreign
national, Boening stated in the complaint. The name of the foreign
national was redacted in the complaint. As required by the
non-disclosure agreement governing former CIA employees, Boening presented
his proposed disclosures to the CIA Publication Review Board. Although the
material Boening cited in his assessment of the agency's relationship with
the individual was available in the public domain, the board refused to approve
the disclosure and classified much the information that Boening sought to
use. An unidentified official
cited in a report by Secrecy News blogger Steve Aftergood said that the CIA's
treatment of the Boening matter reflects a trend over the past few years,
whereby the CIA Publication Review Board is increasingly controlled by agency
Information Review Officers. The source added that the board might regain its
autonomy under new CIA Director Michael Hayden. The CIA counters that
Boening is not an "authorized holder" of the information and
therefore cannot contest the classification decisions of the Publication
Review Board. External link: http://tinyurl.com/2a2axx |