Closing summary
It is now 4pm in Washington DC. Here is a summary of the day’s key developments:
21-year-old suspect Jack Teixeira involved in the Pentagon leaks has been charged with two separate counts under the Espionage Act. One of the counts is unauthorized retention and transmission of national defense information which “could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation”.
Jack Teixeira allegedly began posting classified information onto a Discord server as early as December 2022, according to court documents. According to an FBI interview with another user on the platform (identified as User 1 in the complaint), Teixeira initially posted government information as “paragraphs of text”. Then, in or around January 2023, he allegedly began posting photographs of the documents onto the server.
Discord said that it is cooperating with law enforcement officials following the arrest of 21-year-old Jack Teixeira, who is believed to have been a leader in the Discord group chat Thug Shaker Central. “We are aware that law enforcement officials have arrested the individual accused of illegally posting classified material on our platform. We have cooperated with officials and remain committed to doing so as this investigation continues.”
According to a defense official who spoke to CNN, Jack Teixeira was assigned to a “24/7 operational mission” as part of the 102nd intelligence wing. The mission takes in intelligence from various sources and in turn “packages it into a product for some of the most senior military leaders around the globe”, according to the defense official, tweeted CNN national security reporter Natasha Bertrand.
Liz Cheney said on Thursday that far-right Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene should have her security clearance removed after Greene defended the 21-year-old suspect involved in the Pentagon leaks. “Marjorie Taylor Greene makes clear yet again that she cannot be trusted with America’s national security information and should not have a security clearance of any kind,” she said.
That’s it from me, Maya Yang, as we wrap up the blog for today. Thank you for following along.
Updated
Liz Cheney said on Thursday that far-right Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene should have her security clearance removed after Greene defended the 21-year-old suspect involved in the Pentagon leaks.
On Thursday, Greene tweeted: “When it comes to Ukraine, the Biden administration has lied to us from the very beginning,” following a post in which she said: “Jack Teixeira is white, male, christian and antiwar. That makes him an enemy to the Biden regime.”
In response, former Republican Liz Cheney said:
“Marjorie Taylor Greene makes clear yet again that she cannot be trusted with America’s national security information and should not have a security clearance of any kind.”
Updated
