CIA Lawsuit Dismissal: Judge Invokes State Secrets

A lawsuit against the CIA by journalists and lawyers, who claimed illegal surveillance while visiting Julian Assange, was dismissed by a U.S. judge. The court acknowledged potential national security concerns, allowing the CIA to maintain secrecy over its intelligence activities involving Assange's embassy visits.

A U.S. District Court has dismissed a legal claim against the CIA by journalists and attorneys alleging the agency spied on them during visits to Wikileaks' founder Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

Judge John Koeltl of Manhattan cited the state secrets privilege on Tuesday, allowing the CIA to withhold whether it collected and stored data from the plaintiffs' mobile devices. This surveillance, orchestrated by Undercover Global in 2017, allegedly breached privacy rights under U.S. law.

The move underscores the balance between privacy concerns and national security, as disclosure could endanger U.S. interests. Assange, now in Australia, had faced multiple legal challenges related to Wikileaks' dissemination of sensitive military documents.