CIA papers show Panetta spoke on Bin Laden raid
In this June 9, 2011 file photo, then-CIA Director nominee Leon Panetta testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. Several weeks after overseeing the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, then-CIA Director Leon Panetta violated security rules by revealed the name of the raid commander in a speech attended by the writer of the film “Zero Dark Thirty,” according to a draft report by Pentagon investigators. The unpublished report was first disclosed by the Project on Government Oversight and confirmed Wednesday by Rep. Peter King, who requested the probe nearly two years ago. AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta
WASHINGTON—Newly declassified documents show that former Central Intelligence Agency Director Leon Panetta revealed secret information to “Zero Dark Thirty” scriptwriter Mark Boal when Panetta gave a speech at CIA headquarters marking the raid that killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan.
Panetta said through a spokesman that he didn’t know Boal was in the room.
Judicial Watch, a conservative group, filed a request for the more than 200 pages of documents, which the CIA released Tuesday (Washington time). The documents concerned the internal investigation of its role in the film about the bin Laden raid.
“I had no idea that individual was in the audience,” Panetta said in a statement. “To this day, I wouldn’t know him if he walked into the room.” Panetta spokesman Jeremy Bash said Panetta assumed everyone in the audience had the proper clearance to hear the speech.
The documents refer to Panetta revealing the name of the ground commander of the unit that carried out the raid.
Parts of the speech transcript released in the documents Tuesday are still blacked out.
CIA spokesman Dean Boyd said the CIA has since “overhauled its procedures for interaction with the entertainment industry after an extensive internal review.” He said the agency now maintains “a centralized record-keeping system for entertainment industry requests and, earlier this year, issued detailed guidance on contact with the industry and support for entertainment-related projects,” to make sure classified material is protected.
Boal declined to comment.
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