CIA Director Claims Lawsuit Against Alleged CIA-Backed Spying On Assange Visitors Could Damage US Security

In December, a U.S. judge found that four Americans could sue the CIA for violating their privacy rights under the U.S. Constitution.

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CIA Director William Burns claimed that a lawsuit involving alleged spying on Americans, who visited WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, must be dismissed or there could be “serious” and “exceptionally grave” damage to the “national security of the United States.”

In a declaration [PDF] that invokes the “state secrets privilege,” Burns also maintained that the CIA could not provide any explanation in open court for why the agency believes damage could occur if the lawsuit proceeds. 

“[T]he complete factual bases for my privilege assertions cannot be set forth on the public record without confirming or denying whether CIA has information related to this matter and therefore risking the very harm to the U.S. national security that I seek to protect,” Burns added. 

Four Americans, two attorneys and two journalists, allege that the CIA and CIA Director Mike Pompeo directed UC Global, a Spanish security company, to carry out a spying operation against Assange that violated their privacy. UC Global allegedly copied the contents of their electronic devices and provided the data to the CIA.

Read the full article at The Dissenter