Pentagon Document Leak: US Airman Arrested
Anonymous testimony by one of the members of the Discord group where the documents were leaked
MASSACHUSETTS — The FBI has arrested Airman First Class Jack Douglas Teixeira, a 21-year-old member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, for allegedly exposing dozens of highly sensitive intelligence reports to an online gaming chat group Discord, called Thug Shaker Central.
According to members of the group, "OG," as the person is known in the Discord group, rendered hundreds of classified files by hand, and when it proved too tiresome, began posting hundreds of photos of documents themselves. The documents contained information so sensitive that only people who had undergone months-long background checks would have access to it. Here are some of the information that the leaked documents suggest:
The United States has outlined four “wild card” scenarios in Ukraine. They include the deaths of the leaders of Russia and Ukraine, the removal of leadership within the Russian armed forces, and a Ukrainian strike on the Kremlin.
Contrary to Biden administration’s public pronouncements about the vitality of Ukraine’s army, the US military estimates a pessimistic picture of Ukraine’s upcoming spring counteroffensive and points to potential problems in air defense and artillery.
South Korea was hesitant at supplying weapons to Ukraine.
Egypt secretly planned to supply rockets to Russia.
Turkey was approached by Russia’s notorious Wagner Group, a private military contractor, to help procure supplies.
Israel’s main intelligence agency, the Mossad, had supported anti-government protests, despite its claims of political neutrality.
A Russian fighter jet nearly shot down a U.K. surveillance plane last year.
The US estimates China could use Ukrainian strikes on targets deep inside Russia as an opportunity to cast NATO as the aggressor, and may increase its aid to Russia if it deems the attacks were significant.
The US has been able to intercept Russian targeting plans, down to which exact thermoelectric power plants, electric substations, and railroad and vehicle bridges Russian forces planned to attack inside Ukraine and when.
The leaks prove to be the first of this scale since NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden leaked highly classified information on the US's global surveillance programs in 2013, including the cellphone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the email account of Mexican President Felipe Calderón, prompting global uproar.
However, Airman Teixeira was no whistle-blower. As he posted the material, O.G. lectured the group’s members, who had bonded during the isolation of the pandemic, on the importance of staying abreast of world events. The group contains about two dozen people, mostly video gamers that shared a love of guns and military gear.
Although the leaks have only resulted in denials by foreign governments and no major backlash to the extent seen in 2013, for Ukraine, things are complex. The leaks about the condition of Ukraine’s military and its capabilities have forced commanders to alter plans ahead of an already delayed counteroffensive.
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