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                    Defense Opens in Manning WikiLeaks Case

   by Luis Ramirez

   Defense attorneys in the court-martial of U.S. Army private Bradley
   Manning - accused of leaking hundreds of thousands of classified
   documents to the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks - have opened their
   case. Manning's court-martial is in its sixth week.

   It is his lawyers' chance to try to convince a panel of military jurors
   that Bradley Manning is a whistleblower, not a traitor.

   The defense opened its case Monday with a combat video leaked by
   Manning of a 2007 U.S. helicopter attack in Baghdad that killed
   civilians including two employees of the Reuters news agency.

   Manning has admitted leaking information. His lawyers want some charges
   dismissed, arguing Manning was a naïve young man who acted out of an
   interest to help, not hurt, the United States by exposing what he
   believed was wrongdoing by U.S. forces in Iraq.

   The prosecution rested its case last week, saying Manning committed
   espionage and aided the enemy.   Despite much anticipation, observers
   note prosecutors did not present evidence showing the material he
   leaked caused major damage to U.S. national security.

   Retired U.S. Air Force Colonel Morris Davis, a former chief prosecutor
   at Guantanamo, is among a long list of witnesses called by the defense.
    Davis spoke to VOA earlier.

   "Certainly, there's been embarrassment. But there's a big difference in
   being embarrassed and being harmed and I just haven't seen much
   evidence of there being any harm.  So I think he ought to be held
   accountable but it ought to be a punishment that fits the crime and not
   what the government thought the impact was going to be," he said.

   More details of the damage Manning may have caused could emerge in the
   sentencing phase, when the judge weighs the punishment with the amount
   of harm done.

   Manning's leaks appear indiscriminate. They included 700,000 classified
   documents, diplomatic cables, and government-owned videos of U.S.
   troops in combat.

   That's unlike the case of former intelligence analyst Edward Snowden,
   who released smaller amounts of specific information about U.S.
   overseas cyber offensive  activities as well as domestic surveillance
   operations.

   The two men had some things in common:   They were tech-savvy
   individuals in their 20s who operated in low-level but sensitive
   positions.

   Manning's supporters hope the young private has started a trend.

   "I think that the base of support that we've created around and for
   Bradley Manning might have helped Edward Snowden feel more comfortable
   leaking or feel it's more important. I think we've created a culture
   that while the government doesn't like it, we laud whistleblowers and
   realize their importance," said Nathan Fuller of the Bradley Manning
   Support Network

   The case raises questions of how the U.S. military and intelligence
   agencies will deal with potential security risks among individuals who,
   like Manning, show clear signs of emotional troubles or at the very
   least unease about their assigned missions.

   In Monday's testimony, a chief warrant officer who worked with Manning
   described him as the best and most productive analyst on his team,
   albeit weak in his ability to assess information.

   Manning's trial is due to continue through next month.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/defense-opens-in-manning-wikileaks-ca
   se/1697754.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/defense-opens-in-manning-wikileaks-case/1697754.html