Asif William Rahman has pled guilty to transmitting classified national defence information, the US Justice Department says.A former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) employee has pleaded guilty to leaking secret documents about Israel’s plans to strike Iran last year during a period of escalating regional tensions linked to Israel’s war on Gaza and Lebanon.
In a statement on Friday, the United States Department of Justice said Asif William Rahman, 34, pleaded guilty to two counts of “willful retention and transmission of classified information” related to national defence.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 15 and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for both counts, according to a plea agreement.
“Mr. Rahman betrayed the trust of the American people by unlawfully sharing classified national defense information he swore an oath to protect,” Assistant Attorney General Matthew G Olsen said in the statement.
“Today’s guilty plea demonstrates that the Justice Department will spare no effort to swiftly find and aggressively prosecute those who harm the United States by illegally disclosing our national security secrets.” Advertisement
The FBI arrested Rahman — whom the US government said was an employee of the CIA since 2016 and had a Top-Secret security clearance — in Cambodia in November.
US media outlets reported at the time that American officials accused him of leaking documents prepared by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), which analyses images and information collected by US spy satellites.
The NGA also conducts work in support of secret US military operation …