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Secrecy and Security News

Newer News: May 2020

April 2020

• Units Announced for Deployment in Support of Worldwide Operations, US Army memo for Congress, April 23. "The Department of the Army has identified the following units for deployment as a part of rotational support to worldwide operations."
• Why We Filed a FOIA Request on How Many US Troops Are in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria by Kate Brannen and Ryan Goodman, Just Security, April 22. "How many U.S. servicemembers are currently in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria? The short answer to this simple question is: We don't really know. But why not?"
• Trump administration challenged to reveal troops levels in war zones by Julian Borger, The Guardian, April 22. "The Trump administration is being challenged to reveal how many troops the US has in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria -- and to explain why it stopped publishing those figures more than two years ago."
• Judge tosses Twitter suit over surveillance secrecy by Josh Gerstein, Politico, April 18. "One expert on classified information policy said the judge's comments were startling because they question the bedrock of the U.S. national security classification system."
• Pentagon Pushes Back Against Requirement for Unclassified Database of Spending Plans by Simon Veazey, Epoch Times, April 11. "The Pentagon is pushing back against a new law requiring that it compile data from 5-year spending plans into a single public digital database."
• The Pentagon's latest bid to reduce transparency is a bad idea by Thomas Spoehr and Frederico Bartels, Defense News, April 7. "Unfortunately, the Pentagon has now submitted a legislative proposal that would move the U.S. toward the Chinese model of defense opacity."
• Pentagon denies it seeks to hide future budget information by Aaron Mehta, Defense News, April 3. "The Pentagon is pushing back on reports that it seeks to classify previously public information about its future spending plans, with the department insisting that the transparency of this information that is public as part of the regular budget rollout process will not change."
• If you have to ask EPA for data, are they really public? Agency critics say no by Jeffrey Mervis, Science, April 3. "What is a public document? That question is the latest battleground in the yearslong war over proposed changes in what kinds of studies and data the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will allow to be considered in shaping regulations."
• The Pentagon Ramps Down Transparency as the Coronavirus Crisis Worsens by Dan Spinelli, Mother Jones, April 3. "The military will no longer release information on how many service members get a COVID-19 diagnosis."

Older News: March 2020

https://sgp.fas.org/news/2020/04/index.html
Maintained by Steven Aftergood
Updated May 1, 2020