Snowden leaks may be 'lethal' for troops: lawmakers

Edward Snowden speaking during an interview with The Guardian newspaper at an undisclosed location in Hong Kong on June 6, 2013. Fugitive intelligence contractor Edward Snowden's theft of 1.7 million secret documents could potentially put US military forces in "lethal" danger worldwide. PHOTO | AFP 

By AFP
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WASHINGTON

Fugitive intelligence contractor Edward Snowden's theft of 1.7 million secret documents could potentially put US military forces in "lethal" danger worldwide, American lawmakers warned Thursday, citing a confidential Pentagon report.


 

The Defense Department prepared and sent on Monday to prominent members of Congress a classified paper analysing the potential impact of revelations by the former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor.

The report itself was not made public.

Defense Intelligence Agency chief Lieutenant General Michael Flynn formed a Pentagon task force dubbed the "Information Review Task Force-2" shortly after Snowden's theft of classified files was discovered, a DIA spokesman told AFP.

The DIA-led taskforce worked in coordination with other members of the intelligence community, the military services and the combatant commands.