FORT MEADE, Md., June 2 (UPI) -- Protesters outside a Maryland military base called accused leaker Bradley Manning a victim of politically motivated censorship by the U.S. government.
Bradley, a U.S. Army enlisted man and intelligence analyst, will face a court-martial at Fort Meade Monday on charges including espionage for allegedly turning over thousands of classified documents over to the Internet site WikiLeaks.
Manning faces a possible life sentence if convicted in the massive security breach; however, his supporters said at the base gates Saturday Manning was a hero for shedding light on what they said was the falsified intelligence that supported the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"I think Bradley Manning is a courageous, courageous young man and he exposed things the American military didn't want to believe or didn't want exposed," Barbara Apfelbaum, a 67-year-old teacher and antiwar activist from New York City, told the Baltimore Sun.
The prosecution contends Manning violated the military's trust and used his training and position to methodically collect sensitive material for several weeks.
The Washington Post said Sunday the prosecution planned to call 150 witnesses to bolster its case. Two dozen witnesses will likely testify in partially closed sessions in order to prevent more classified information from being revealed.
