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UK military officer suspected of leaking secret Afghanistan data to rights group

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] The British Ministry of Defence (MOD) confirmed Wednesday that a UK Army officer was arrested in Afghanistan and returned to the London for questioning on suspicion of revealing secret information to a human rights organization. Lt. Col. Owen McNally is accused of violating the Official Secrets Act 1989 by supplying civilian casualty figures to a woman from a human rights group. A conviction under the statute entails a maximum 14 year prison sentence. The MOD is releasing no further details at this time. Human Rights Watch has published very specific data related to civilian casualties in Afghanistan, which US and NATO forces feel undermines their efforts there. The UK Parliament recently debated security-related reporting restrictions, as opponents have criticized the Secrets Act for precluding important issues from public debate. Corporal Daniel James was convicted of violating the Secrets Act in November 2008. Unlike McNally, James was accused of relaying British military information to Iran.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on February 04, 2009 (boomark / email).