In a follow up to my diary yesterday, The BBC is reporting this morning that after complaining yesterday that the Trump administration leaked the identity of the Manchester Bomber well before the UK police had the full opportunity to complete their inquiries and follow up on vital leads.
Now it appears that vital information from the investigation has been leaked AGAIN and, just like before, this leak has occurred AGAINST the express wishes of the UK police.
From the article:
Police investigating the Manchester Arena bomb attack have stopped sharing information with the US after leaks to the media, the BBC understands.
Further:
The UK's National Police Chiefs' Council described the "unauthorised disclosure" as a breach of trust which had potentially undermined a "major counter-terrorism investigation".
Counter-terrorism detectives have spoken in the past about how a delay of about 36 hours before the public know who is being investigated can allow known associates of the suspect to be arrested without being tipped off.
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham said the leaks had worried him "greatly", and he had raised them with the US ambassador.
..and regarding the reaction of officials:
A Whitehall source described the second US leak as "on another level", and said it had caused "disbelief and astonishment" across the British government.
Once again, this leaking of intelligence seriously undermines Law Enforcement efforts to coordinate anti-terrorism activity in relation to an incident that has killed 22 innocent people.
Now that the sharing of intel in relation to the Manchester Bombing is stopping — it places those of us in the West in a perilous diplomatic and security space.
The article speculates that the source of the leaks is 'law enforcement‘ rather than the White House.
But the fact that the UK is so publically shaming the US administration tells us a lot about the incompetence, mendacity and utter lack of discipline of the Trump Administration.
The fish, they say, rots from the head.