US Soldier in Wikileaks Case Takes Stand at Hearing

US Army Private Bradley Manning, facing court-martial on suspicion of leaking secret documents to the WikiLeaks website, testifies at his trial.

Published

6 months ago

Categories

US

Topics

United States, Human Rights

People

Bradley Manning

Places

United States of America, Iraq

Tags

wikileaks

Transcript

U.S. Army Private Bradley Manning makes his way to court. He's facing court-martial on suspicion that he leaked hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. intelligence and diplomatic cables to the Wikileaks website. In his first public comments since his arrest in Iraq, Manning testified he was not treated properly while awaiting trial, and given little information about the charges against him. Confined to a structure he called a "cage" of eight feet square inside a tent, he suffered a breakdown about a month after his arrest. Guards later found a noose in the cell. On his return to the U.S. in 2010, Manning was in solitary confinement for up to 23 hours a day. Manning could face life in prison if convicted. But his lawyers hope a plea deal could result in a 16 year prison term. Wikileaks has never confirmed that Manning was the source of any documents it released.