Sunday, October 27, 2013

German media report NSA documents show Obama lied to Chancellor Merkel. He denied knowing her phone was being tapped and said he would've stopped it if he had. Per documents, NSA official personally briefed Obama in 2010 on Merkel phone tap and he let it continue-BBC

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UPDATE: NSA says "[General] Alexander did not discuss with President Obama in 2010 an alleged foreign intelligence operation involving German Chancellor Merkel, nor has he ever discussed alleged operations involving Chancellor Merkel....The statement does not make it clear whether the president was informed of the bugging operation by other means."...

10/27/13, "Obama 'not told of Merkel phone bugging'," BBC

"A statement from the National Security Agency on Sunday denied the reports in Bild.

"[General] Alexander did not discuss with President Obama in 2010 an alleged foreign intelligence operation involving German Chancellor Merkel, nor has he ever discussed alleged operations involving Chancellor Merkel," NSA spokeswoman Vanee Vines said. "News reports claiming otherwise are not true."

The statement does not make it clear whether the president was informed of the bugging operation by other means. Mr Obama is reported to have told the German chancellor that he knew nothing of the operation when the two leaders spoke."...

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10/27/13, "NSA: New reports in German media deepen US-Merkel spy row," BBC

"Fresh reports in German media based on leaked US intelligence documents are prompting damaging new questions about the extent of US surveillance....

President Barack Obama apologised to the German chancellor and promised Mrs Merkel he knew nothing of the alleged phone monitoring and would have stopped it if he had, Der Spiegel reports. 

But on Sunday Bild newspaper quoted US intelligence sources as saying NSA head Keith Alexander personally briefed the president about the covert operation targeting Mrs Merkel in 2010.

"Obama did not halt the operation but rather let it continue," the newspaper quoted a senior NSA official as saying.

Her number was still on a surveillance list in 2013."...


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