Human Rights First Concerned Leaked Documents Put Afghan Civilians at Risk

Washington, DC Human Rights First today expressed concern that indentifying information contained in the government documents made public by Wikileaks.org may put Afghan civilians at risk by identifying them as cooperating with international forces. Human Rights First’s Dixon Osburn noted:

“While Human Rights First supports calls for greater transparency in U.S. operations in Afghanistan and understands that the release of the documents may contribute to a better public understanding of such operations, we are alarmed by the risk posed to Afghan civilians who the documents may have already put in danger. Wikileaks should redact any identifying information that endangers innocent civilians from the documents it has already made public and should review and redact any such identifying information that from any additional documents it releases in the future.”

For more information about Human Rights First’s ongoing work related to U.S. detention policy in Afghanistan, please visit here.