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Pentagon official accused of spying for israel { August 27 2004 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40004-2004Aug27.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40004-2004Aug27.html
FBI Probes Pentagon Official Accused of Spying for Israel
By Bradley Graham and Thomas E. Ricks
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, August 27, 2004; 9:45 PM
The FBI is investigating a mid-level Pentagon official who specializes in Iranian affairs for allegedly passing classified information to Israel, and arrests in the case could come as early as next week, officials at the Pentagon and other government agencies said last night.
The official under investigation wasn't named by those familiar with the situation, but was described by them as a desk officer in the Pentagon's Near East and South Asia Bureau, one of six regional policy sections. The official under scrutiny was described as a veteran of the Defense Intelligence Agency who moved to the Pentagon's policy branch three years ago and had been nearing retirement.
One government official familiar with the case said it isn't yet clear whether the charges that are brought will extend to espionage. So far, he said, the FBI investigation has involved lesser allegations of mishandling of classified information and making unauthorized disclosures.
The investigation has been underway for more than a year. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and top Pentagon lawyers were informed of it some time ago, officials said. But many other senior Pentagon officials expressed surprise at the news when it was first reported last night on CBS.
Pentagon officials sought to minimize the significance of any sensitive information the suspect individual may have wrongfully passed. "The Defense Department has been cooperating with the Justice Department on this matter for an extended period of time," the Pentagon said in a statement issued last night. "The investigation involves a single individual at DOD at the desk officer level, who was not in a position to have significant influence over U.S. policy. Nor could a foreign power be in a position to influence U.S. policy through this individual. To the best of DOD's knowledge, the investigation does not target any other DOD individuals."
Even so, the case is likely to attract intense attention because the official being investigated works under William J. Luti, deputy under secretary of Defense for Near East and South Asian Affairs. Luti oversaw the Pentagon's "Office of Special Plans," which conducted some of the early policy work for the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Some critics of the Bush administration have accused that office of distorting intelligence about Iraq in order to improve the case for going to war by arguing that Saddam Hussein's Iraq and al Qaeda were much more closely linked than the intelligence community believed.
Luti reports to Undersecretary for Policy Douglas Feith, who in turn reports to Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz and Rumsfeld.
A law enforcement official said that the information allegedly passed by the Pentagon suspect went to Israel through the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobbying organization. The information was said to have been the draft of a presidential directive related to U.S. policies toward Iran.
In addition to the Pentagon employee, the FBI investigation focuses on at least two employees at AIPAC, the law enforcement official said.
Last night, AIPAC vigorously denied any wrongdoing and said it is fully cooperating with the investigation.
"Any allegation of criminal conduct by the organization or its employees is baseless and false," spokesman Josh Block said in a written statement. "We would not condone or tolerate for a second any violation of U.S. law or interests." He said he had been traveling and so had no additional information on the situation.
Another AIPAC official said: "Our folks are pretty outraged about this. We've had these kinds of accusations before, and none of them has ever proven to be true."
David Siegel, spokesman for the Israeli Embassy, said: "We categorically deny these allegations. They are completely false and outrageous."
Staff writer Dan Eggen and researcher Alice Crites contributed to this report.
© 2004 The Washington Post Company
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