Pentagon ‘working around the clock’ to determine size of intel leak

The Pentagon is working to determine the size of a classified information leak that received widespread attention last week after it was discovered to have been posted to several social media platforms, a spokesperson said Monday.  

“The Department of Defense is working around the clock to look at the scope and scale of the distribution, the assessed impact and our mitigation measures,” Chris Meagher, assistant to the secretary of defense for public affairs, told reporters.  

“We’re still investigating how this happened, as well as the scope of the issue. There have been steps to take a closer look at how this type of information is distributed and to whom. We’re also still trying to assess what might be out there,” he added. 

DOD officials said on Friday that the department was reviewing a batch of leaked documents purportedly related to Russia’s war in Ukraine, but additional documents on other national security topics have since surfaced. 

Some of the leaked documents appear to cover U.S. and NATO support to Kyiv, while others relate to other countries, including Israel and South Korea — though there are concerns that some of the materials may have been altered. 

The Pentagon also made a referral to the Justice Department, which has opened a criminal investigation into the leaks.

In addition, an interagency effort is underway to assess the potential impact the documents could have on national security. 

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was first briefed on the leak on April 6 and the next day began “convening senior leaders on a daily basis to discuss the unauthorized disclosures,” Meagher said. 

The Pentagon also engaged with allies and partners, including some that were affected by the leak, and informed national security committees in Congress about the disclosure. 

In working to determine how widespread the document leak is, the Pentagon has convened officials from its public affairs, legislative affairs, policy, general counsel, intelligence and security, and joint staff offices, according to Meagher. 

“This team is really working to get our arms around everything that has to do with this distribution — that’s reviewing and assessing the veracity of the photograph documents that are circulating on social media, it’s assessing the national security implications, it is making sure that we’re engaging with members of Congress, and it’s making sure that we’re engaging with allies and partners,” Meagher said. 

He would not say who was leading the team but that they report directly to Austin. 

Asked whether U.S. officials had reached out to the social media platforms to have them remove the posted materials, he declined to comment.