BBC News, 14
August
Wikileaks Revelations
 |
| Bradley Manning has said he leaked the papers to provoke public debate |
Wikileaks Revelations
Pte First
Class Bradley Manning has apologised for hurting the US by leaking a trove of
classified US government documents to Wikileaks.
Pte
Manning, 25, spoke at the sentencing hearing of his court martial at Fort
Meade, Maryland.
Earlier on
Wednesday, a military psychiatrist testified Pte Manning had struggled with his
gender identity.
Pte Manning
faces up to 90 years in prison following his conviction in July on 20 espionage
and other charges.
In an
unsworn statement at the hearing, Pte Manning said: "I'm sorry that my
actions hurt people. I'm sorry that it hurt the United States.
"I'm
apologising for the unexpected results of my actions. The last three years have
been a learning experience for me."
Pte Manning
said he did not believe at the time that leaking the information would cause
harm.
Last month,
military Judge Col Denise Lind convicted Pte Manning of 20 charges including
espionage, theft and violating computer regulations.
He had
already admitted passing hundreds of thousands of battlefield reports and
diplomatic cables to Wikileaks.
The BBC's
Tara McKelvey at Fort Meade, Maryland, says that in Wednesday's hearing Pte
Manning was quiet and took notes throughout the testimony, but appeared to grow
emotional as one defence witness spoke about his desire to change the world.
'Off-keel'
The
sentencing phase of the trial has focused on how much damage the revelations
caused. The prosecution has called witnesses who described the impact on US
diplomatic relations and on the military's dealings with Afghan civilians,
among other affects.
Pte Manning
has said he never intended to harm US national security but wanted the
disclosures to provoke public debate about US foreign policy and the military.
Ahead of
Pte Manning's statement, Navy Capt David Moulton, a forensics psychiatrist,
testified that at the time of the leak he felt abandoned by friends and family
and had hit a rough patch with his boyfriend amid an isolating deployment.
The
psychiatrist interviewed Pte Manning for 21 hours after his arrest.
Pte Manning
had also decided he wanted to become a woman, Capt Moulton said.
In
psychiatric terms, Pte Manning has a "gender-identity disorder", or
"disturbance of one's gender", Capt Moulton said.
This is
different from being gay, he added.
"Gender
is very much at the core of our identity," he said, adding that when a
person is uncertain about his or her gender, the whole world seems
"off-keel".
Amid this
turmoil, Pte Manning also became disillusioned about the US war in Iraq and was
trying to correct "injustices", Capt Moulton said.
"Manning
was under the impression that the leaked information was going to change how
the world saw the war in Iraq," the psychiatrist testified.
About to
leave?
He added
that Pte Manning believed the leaks would ultimately end all war, and the young
soldier was unclear about the extent of the punishment he would face for his
actions.
"He
underestimated how much trouble he would get in, for sure," Capt Moulton
said.
 |
Pte
Manning's supporters delivered 100,000
signatures in support of him receiving
the Nobel Peace Prize
|
Separately,
an Army psychotherapist who treated Pte Manning while he was in Iraq said he
had begun the process to remove him from the military.
"He
was having issues at work," Capt Michael Worsley said, adding Pte
Manning's job as an intelligence analyst had made him even more isolated and
anxious.
Pte
Manning's sister and aunt are also on the list of potential defence witnesses.
Dozens of spectators and journalists were in attendance on Wednesday amid tight
security at Fort Meade.
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