Police hit out at FBI over leaks
Jamie Doward and Mark Townsend
Sunday August 20, 2006
The Observer
Anti-terror police in Britain have made an angry request to their US counterparts asking them to stop leaking details of this month’s suspected bomb plot over fears that it could jeopardise the chances of a successful prosecution and hamper the gathering of evidence.
The British security services, MI5 and MI6, are understood to be dismayed that a number of sensitive details surrounding the alleged plot – including an FBI estimate that as many as 50 people were involved – were leaked to the media.
FBI sources confirmed to The Observer that the bureau had been ordered to stop briefing at the request of the British authorities. ‘The shutters have come down,’ a bureau source said. ‘We have been told not to discuss the case any more.’ [MORE]
Blair ‘feels betrayed by Bush on Lebanon’
By SIMON WALTERS 22:57pm 19th August 2006
The alliance between George Bush and Tony Blair is in danger after it was revealed that the Prime Minister believes the President has ‘let him down badly’ over the Middle East crisis.
A senior Downing Street source said that, privately, Mr Blair broadly agrees with John Prescott, who said Mr Bush’s record on the issue was ‘crap’.
The source said: “We all feel badly let down by Bush. We thought we had persuaded him to take the Israel-Palestine situation seriously, but we were wrong. How can anyone have faith in a man of such low intellect?”. [MORE]
I share this commenter’s sentiment: “Bliar is trying to jump a sinking ship, somebody tie him to it.” – V, London
Well-Timed Terrorism? by Jason Ditz reveals the King-making plans of idiots and liars.
And medialens exchanges e-mails with BBC online news editor Steve Herrmann concerning the historically high levels of insurgent attacks in Iraq against occupation forces and the BBC’s misleading reporting of the situation.