dagblog - Comments for "British outraged over alleged U.S. leaks in the Manchester bomb investigation"

Interpretation from David

artappraiser — Fri, 26 May 2017 15:51:26 +0000

In reply to British outraged over alleged U.S. leaks in the Manchester bomb investigation

Interpretation from David Ignatius @ WaPo, who has been publishing spook leaks for decades:

The trust underlying the American-British spy partnership is fraying

May 25

The British-American intelligence partnership is so deeply intertwined that it will certainly survive the furor this week over leaks about the British police investigation of Monday’s bombing in Manchester. But in angry British statements, you can see the trust that underlies the intelligence relationship starting to fray.

Intelligence sharing between the two countries is hard-wired, especially in electronic surveillance. A British official explained recently that the exchange is so automatic, it could be altered only by rewriting computer code that links U.S. and British systems, along with those of Canada, Australia and New Zealand in the espionage alliance known as the “Five Eyes.”

Britain prides itself on its ability to steal and keep secrets, and the Manchester flap is only the latest in a string of American indiscretions that have infuriated British spymasters. Other recent flash points included the Obama administration’s leak of details about a British-Saudi penetration of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, and the suggestion by President Trump’s spokesman in March that GCHQ, Britain’s signals-intelligence service, helped “wiretap” Trump, which GCHQ dismissed as “utterly ridiculous” in an unusual public statement.

The British complaints about leaks will bolster the Trump administration’s argument that such unauthorized disclosures of sensitive information are the real national-security problem, not the allegations of collusion between the Trump team and Russian intelligence. The Russia probe is probably unstoppable now that Robert S. Mueller III has been appointed as special counsel to investigate the matter. But the push for more aggressive Justice Department investigation of leaks started when Trump took office and will gain momentum now.

British officials argued that the Manchester police photographs that appeared in the New York Times were an unusually specific use [....]

The cited article requires

Lurker — Fri, 26 May 2017 15:14:52 +0000

In reply to British outraged over alleged U.S. leaks in the Manchester bomb investigation

The cited article requires registration. Here's one that doesn't:

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-security-manchester-idUSKBN18L0QU

This seems to confirm Carolyn Glick's contention that the US intelligence agencies are out of control and leaking whatever they wish, allies be damned. See my "Leaky Spooks" a few days ago in In The News.

@ TheGuardian.com, this

artappraiser — Thu, 25 May 2017 17:01:12 +0000

In reply to British outraged over alleged U.S. leaks in the Manchester bomb investigation

@ TheGuardian.com, this morning:

Manchester bombing: more people linked to attack may be at large

Investigators also believe there may be more materials connected to the making of bombs that have still to be found

[....] Meanwhile, a German

artappraiser — Thu, 25 May 2017 16:57:32 +0000

In reply to British outraged over alleged U.S. leaks in the Manchester bomb investigation

[....] Meanwhile, a German security official told The Washington Post that the bomber, 22-year-old Salman Abedi, had been in Düsseldorf just four days before the bombing, The development signaled an expansion of an investigation that already has stretched to North Africa and continental Europe.

Authorities were investigating whether Abedi had possible contacts with extremists in Germany, including during a 2015 visit to Frankfurt, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. Abedi was en route back to Britain from Istanbul when he stopped off in Düsseldorf.

The German newspaper Der Tagesspiegel first reported the bomber’s presence in Germany. The paper, which cited unidentified security sources, said Abedi, flew from Düsseldorf to Manchester last Thursday [....]

from

Manchester bombing probe expands to Germany amid raids, arrests in Britain

@ WaPo, May 25

So no surprise the latest

artappraiser — Thu, 25 May 2017 16:57:06 +0000

In reply to A key takeaway from this

So no surprise, the latest update to this story is that Trump is calling for an investigation:

A key takeaway from this

artappraiser — Thu, 25 May 2017 16:01:39 +0000

In reply to British outraged over alleged U.S. leaks in the Manchester bomb investigation

One key takeaway from this piece should be that the NYTimes, in their reporting on topic, is taking information from the leaker(s) that the Brits are objecting to.