BRUSSELS, Jan. 12 (UPI) -- The Swiss government has launched a probe into the leaking of an intelligence report on CIA camps in Eastern Europe to track down the source.
The editor-in-chief and two journalists from the Swiss weekly Sonntagsblick,
which published the story, are also under investigation for disclosing
military secrets. The magazine Sunday published quotes from an internal
Egyptian government fax, which had been intercepted by Swiss intelligence.
The document claimed the CIA had held 23 Iraqi and Afghan prisoners at a base in southeast Romania. It also mentioned similar covert jails in Bulgaria, Ukraine, Kosovo and Macedonia. Romania, Ukraine and Macedonia have denied the allegations.
Although the journalists could get up to five years in prison if found guilty of revealing military secrets, they are not obliged to hand the military investigation much detail, as journalistic sources are protected under Swiss law.
The Swiss Cabinet Wednesday condemned the leak, saying it was a criminal offense and a blow to the country's reputation.
