Trial of Former CIA Officer Begins Over Leak of Information Regarding Iran

On January 13, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that the trial of Jeffrey Sterling, a former officer of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), has begun on charges of leaking information about a covert operation against Iran's nuclear activities to a New York Times reporter. James Risen, the reporter, has detailed these activities in his book titled 'State of War.' The New York Times reports that due to pressure from journalists and press freedom advocates, the U.S. Attorney General has withdrawn its demands for Risen to testify in court. The journalist is not required to appear in court, which journalists and press freedom activists consider a victory for themselves. Jeffrey Sterling worked for the CIA for nine years (1993 to 2002). News of his arrest was published in January 2011. At that time, without disclosing details about the reasons for his arrest, some reports indicated that he had provided secrets related to U.S. covert operations against Iran's nuclear program to the New York Times reporter. The leaked information stated that the CIA, by hiring a nuclear expert during the former Soviet Union, aimed to provide deliberately flawed plans to Iran to hinder the country's nuclear program. The code name for this expert was 'Merlin.' In his book, James Risen criticized this plan, suggesting that such plans could easily be identified. Risen's book was published eight years ago. The U.S. Department of Justice previously stated that Sterling had provided classified information to James Risen after losing a legal case regarding racial discrimination and being barred from publishing his memoirs. The New York Times, citing U.S. prosecutors, reported that emails and recorded phone calls indicate that the two were in contact. However, Sterling's lawyers argue that these conversations only show that Risen was trying to gather information from anyone knowledgeable about the intelligence program.