Gates assails Internet group over attack video

BOARD A U.S. MILITARY AIRCRAFT (Reuters) – Defense Secretary Robert Gates criticized the Internet group Wikileaks on Tuesday over its release of a video showing a 2007 U.S. helicopter attack that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff. The group, which says it promotes leaks to fight government and corporate corruption, released the video without providing any context explaining the situation, Gates said. "These people can put out anything they want, and they're never held accountable for it. There's no before and there's no after," Gates said.

Wikileaks disputed Gates' contention the video failed to provide context. In an e-mail, it accused the U.S. military of making "numerous false or misleading statements," including the contention there was an active firefight between U.S. forces and those killed.

"Classified records which we will shortly release show that there was a report of small arms fire at 9:50 a.m., somewhere in the suburb of New Baghdad, shooter and location UNIDENTIFIED. There is no reference to U.S. forces having been hit by the fire. The same records report that at 10:18, 28 minutes later, the crowd was seen and the killing commenced."