Sunday 9 March 2003

GCHQ arrest over Observer spying report

It's so reassuring to know that not everyone who works for GCHQ is a totalitarian fascist. This explains why they have an "Officicial Secrets Act" for crying out loud! They shroud themselves in secrecy and then develop hideous weapons of mass destruction and we're not talking VX Gas here, our wonderful government was developing Weaponised Bubonic Plague! And they're telling Saddam to disarm?!?!?!?!?!?

An employee at the top-secret Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) has been arrested following revelations in The Observer last weekend about an American 'dirty tricks' surveillance operation to win votes at the United Nations in favour of a tough new resolution on Iraq.

Gloucestershire police confirmed last night that a 28-year-old woman was arrested last week on suspicion of contravening the Official Secrets Act. The woman, from the Cheltenham area, has been released on police bail pending further inquiries. More arrests are expected.

A top-secret memo from the National Security Agency, which monitors communications around the world, was passed to this newspaper by British security sources who objected to being asked to aid the American operation. The leak marks a serious breach between the Blair government and elements of the intelligence community opposed to using British security resources to help the US drive towards war.

Full story...