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US State Department investigates AIPAC Director Morris Amitay’s acquisition of classified Hawk missile data
Published by Charleston Voice staff, 5.08.12
There’s not a soul on the planet who believes the US State Department will bring justice to the American people for this crime.
Documents
US Department of State investigation files reveal the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s (AIPAC) director received classified US national defense information. In 1975 the Ford administration tried to sell improved Hawk anti-aircraft missiles to Jordan and duly sent notification containing classified Department of Defense data to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and House Foreign Affairs Committee. AIPAC’s Director Morris Amitay reviewed the classified document after being informed “secretly by aides of Senator Clifford P. Case, Republican of New Jersey, and Representative Jonathan B. Bingham, Democrat of New York” according to the New York Times.
According to criminal investigation files released on January 20, 2012, this disclosure to AIPAC was “unauthorized” and included the dollar amounts and quantitative configurations of the missile system. The State Department considered “The specific details of Jordan’s military equipment needs are information provided us in confidence by that government. The classification of the documents in question was, in our view, substantively proper.”
Amitay and AIPAC quickly mounted a massive campaign in opposition to the missile sale, telling constituent public pressure groups that the weapons were capable of “providing cover for offensive operations against Israel.” Jordan subsequently considered acquiring a similar system from the Soviet Union.
According to the US Department of State, “Had Jordan actually entered into such a major arms-supply relationship with the Soviets, this would have had a significant adverse impact on U.S. national defense interests and on U.S.-Jordanian relations.” The Defense Department letter is still classified.
