Spionage memo UN arrestatie in Londen

[Cees Binkhorst]

REPLY TO: D66 at nic.surfnet.nl

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A39104-2003Mar4.html

Just when you thought the United States' worldwide unpopularity
couldn't plunge to greater depths, a story in Sunday's London
Observer reported that in preparation for another possible United
Nations vote on military intervention against Iraq, the U.S.
government was engaging in 'dirty tricks' by conducting surveillance
on members of the U.N. Security Council," reports Salon's Jake
Tapper.

"The story was based on a memo allegedly sent by a National Security
Agency official seeking surveillance information on the thoughts of
U.N. Security Council delegates for countries that remain either
opposed to or undecided on the war against Iraq. . . .

"'It's a big story in Russia and it led the French news today,' said
Martin Bright, the Observer's home affairs editor. Bright, who helped
write the story, was reached on his cellphone as he drove home from
an interview with Canadian TV. Bright said that he had agreed to
interviews with NBC, CNN, and Fox News Channel – and that all three
had called and canceled. . . .

"When the story broke Sunday there were initially questions about the
legitimacy of the memo by the Drudge Report and the Washington Times,
which noted that the memo used British spelling of several words. But
the Observer subsequently fixed the memo and added a clarification,
noting that it had 'reverted to the original US-spelling as in the
document leaked to The Observer.' Questions about its credibility
seemed to vanish when no one in the government disputed it."

http://www.observer.co.uk/iraq/story/0,12239,910648,00.html
GCHQ arrest over Observer spying report

Martin Bright, home affairs editor
Sunday March 9, 2003
The Observer

An employee at the top-secret Government Communications Headquarters
(GCHQ) has been arrested following revelations in The Observer last
weekend about an American 'dirty tricks' surveillance operation to
win votes at the United Nations in favour of a tough new resolution
on Iraq.
Gloucestershire police confirmed last night that a 28-year-old woman
was arrested last week on suspicion of contravening the Official
Secrets Act. The woman, from the Cheltenham area, has been released
on police bail pending further inquiries. More arrests are
expected.

A top-secret memo from the National Security Agency, which monitors
communications around the world, was passed to this
newspaper by British security sources who objected to being asked to
aid the American operation. The leak marks a serious breach
between the Blair government and elements of the intelligence
community opposed to using British security resources to help the US
drive towards war.

Officials at GCHQ, the electronic surveillance arm of the British
intelligence service, were asked by the Americans to provide valuable
information from 'product lines', intelligence jargon for phone taps
and e-mail interception. The document was circulated among British
intelligence services before being leaked.

A GCHQ spokesman confirmed last night that the woman was an employee.

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