Ex-soldier Chelsea Manning, the first major WikiLeaks source, was returned to prison on Friday after refusing to testify before a grand jury in the WikiLeaks case. A judge in Virginia decided to return Chelsea Manning, the first major source of WikiLeaks to prison for not answering questions about military secrets which led up to the massive leak of more than 700,000 classified documents about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and wires from the State Department.
Judge Claude Hilton made the decision after a brief hearing in a federal court in Arlington, Virginia, where the ex-soldier confirmed that he was not going to testify and that he would “accept what you impose on me.”
Manning’s attorney requested that he be placed under house arrest due to medical complications, but the judge felt that he could receive adequate care at the center where he is being held.
Manning had earlier said this Thursday that he could return to jail for contempt after refusing to answer questions about his disclosure of military secrets in 2010.
In a statement, Manning explained why he refuses to answer questions about the publication of military secrets nine years ago.
In the note he explained that on Wednesday he appeared before a “secret grand jury” after receiving “immunity” for his testimony and that he objected to answering questions about the dissemination of information in 2010, about which, he recalled, already offered details before a court martial in 2013.
“In solidarity with many activists who face difficulties, I will maintain my principles . I am prepared to face the consequences of my refusal,” said Manning.
Several media news outlets reported last weekend that Manning had been summoned to testify before a grand jury in the framework of the investigation of WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange. On January 23, Assange’s defense reported that it had presented an “urgent request” to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (CIDH), based in Washington, to order the United States to reveal the charges filed in secret against your client.
Manning was convicted in 2013 when she was still known as soldier Bradley Manning to 35 years in prison and is responsible for the largest leak of confidential documents in US history.
On May 17, 2017 she was released after seven years deprived of freedom, one fifth of the sentence that had been imposed, thanks to the presidential pardon granted in January of that year by the then president, Barack Obama (2009-2017). ), three days before leaving the White House.
While a military intelligence analyst, Manning leaked to the WikiLeaks portal in 2010 more than 700,000 classified documents on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and cables of the State Department, which was a setback for US diplomacy and fueled a debate on the role of Washington in the world.
Obama commuted the sentence to Manning, because in the trial, which ended in the summer of 2013, he assumed responsibility for his actions, said he regretted having leaked the documents and blamed his crime on his innocence of just being 22 years old.
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